I think sometimes the Lord uses strange things to get our attention. I just finished reading "The Help" and it won me over in many ways. I loved it. The movie was great too. However, the one thing that hit home for me was Aibileen encouragement to Mae Mobley because she was not getting it from her mother.
"You is kind. You is smart. You is important." You can watch it here. Does that just not melt your heart?
After reading this and watching it I decided that I am going to put this into practice every morning and every night. Looking right into Miss D's eyes I tell her the same thing, plus how beautiful she is, special she is to us and that God loves her and cares for her. Tonight after I was finished she said, "AGAIN!".
It struck me this past weekend that I have not been building her up enough. What I do for her in her third year of life could define who she is as a person. I would hate to think that I never made time for encouragement but always made room for correction.
I hope that this time for us will bond our hearts, help me love her more, and make her feel valuable.
I can only imagine the hurt and confusion in her heart...Lord, may these words be balm to her spirit and heart.
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Sunday, September 25, 2011
The Family Ref
Life is so busy. Going from two to three is a big jump...especially when you add a 3 year old. My house is always loud and I feel like I need to wear a black and white stripe shirt most days acting as our in-house ref. I finally learned for the most part to let them just have it out. To ignore it mainly and only focus on a few things. I got to the point where hearing my own voice was annoying.
The dynamics in our family has shifted and all kids are trying make our family puzzle work. Jack went from youngest to middle and the struggle there was painfully obvious...demanding all attention. Miss D went from the only child to a house of 3 and sharing was not in her vocabulary...but hitting and biting were. Keegan turned into a full fledged Kindergartner...getting no naps...and is super tired when he gets home making afternoons miserable. Jack has missed Keegan so much while he has been at school and occasion has cried himself to sleep at nap time missing him.
In all of this I almost feel like things are beginning to settle a bit. There are days that I want to go outside and scream, and there are days where everyone seems to play together nicely. Miss D's hitting and biting streak has dramatically lessened, however the defiance has been kicked up a notch. "No" and "I don't want to" are her new phrases and boy...does that drive me UP THE WALL!!! Consistency has to be key with her, so time outs are given every time she says that..every time. We both hate it, however I "think" she is getting the point that she can not disrespect me.
Last week she had her dental work done and after two visits, she has a shiny new "grill". Three silver teeth up top in the front and two in the back. We had to go back the second time because the dentist thought that a giant white tooth in-between two silver teeth looked right. (this was after I requested all silver) Um...no...it looked like a giant white tooth with 2 missing teeth on both sides of it. So, he made it silver and now it looks more uniform.
We had lots of one on one time while she was recovering from the dental work. She seemed to soak in the attention and her behavior seemed better. She kept on calling me "mommy" off and on and I told her that she could call me that if you wanted to. Now she is calling me mommy more than Mrs. Michelle. However, she informed me the other day that she has another mommy too. In a weird way, I feel sad for her other mommy.
Emotionally, this foster to adopt situation is super hard for me. The love I need for Miss D is just not natural. You think it should be that you are rescuing a child out of a situation and that you automatically will love them. I keep praying that God will give me an eternal love for her and something so unexplainable that I can only attribute to Him working through me. I care for her deeply, but am begging God to make me smitten with her like I am with my own boys.
God has a lot of work to do in our family...but I know He can do it and it will be amazing.
In the mean time...I will just put on my black and white stripe shirt and keep training my kids to follow God and walk in His truth...even when it is hard.
The dynamics in our family has shifted and all kids are trying make our family puzzle work. Jack went from youngest to middle and the struggle there was painfully obvious...demanding all attention. Miss D went from the only child to a house of 3 and sharing was not in her vocabulary...but hitting and biting were. Keegan turned into a full fledged Kindergartner...getting no naps...and is super tired when he gets home making afternoons miserable. Jack has missed Keegan so much while he has been at school and occasion has cried himself to sleep at nap time missing him.
In all of this I almost feel like things are beginning to settle a bit. There are days that I want to go outside and scream, and there are days where everyone seems to play together nicely. Miss D's hitting and biting streak has dramatically lessened, however the defiance has been kicked up a notch. "No" and "I don't want to" are her new phrases and boy...does that drive me UP THE WALL!!! Consistency has to be key with her, so time outs are given every time she says that..every time. We both hate it, however I "think" she is getting the point that she can not disrespect me.
Last week she had her dental work done and after two visits, she has a shiny new "grill". Three silver teeth up top in the front and two in the back. We had to go back the second time because the dentist thought that a giant white tooth in-between two silver teeth looked right. (this was after I requested all silver) Um...no...it looked like a giant white tooth with 2 missing teeth on both sides of it. So, he made it silver and now it looks more uniform.
We had lots of one on one time while she was recovering from the dental work. She seemed to soak in the attention and her behavior seemed better. She kept on calling me "mommy" off and on and I told her that she could call me that if you wanted to. Now she is calling me mommy more than Mrs. Michelle. However, she informed me the other day that she has another mommy too. In a weird way, I feel sad for her other mommy.
Emotionally, this foster to adopt situation is super hard for me. The love I need for Miss D is just not natural. You think it should be that you are rescuing a child out of a situation and that you automatically will love them. I keep praying that God will give me an eternal love for her and something so unexplainable that I can only attribute to Him working through me. I care for her deeply, but am begging God to make me smitten with her like I am with my own boys.
God has a lot of work to do in our family...but I know He can do it and it will be amazing.
In the mean time...I will just put on my black and white stripe shirt and keep training my kids to follow God and walk in His truth...even when it is hard.
Thursday, September 8, 2011
We're a happy fama-wee....
Since my last post was extremely depressing, I thought I should follow up quickly with a good post. Last weekend we went to my parents house for my cousin's wedding. We had a great weekend and I was able to catch my breath and Miss D had distractions (Gi Gi and G-Bob).
This week we have turned over a new leaf. Not to say that we want digress, but Miss D has stopped her tantrums quickly and the hitting has been few and far between. I can actually breathe and enjoy life as a family of 5. My neighbor Tawanda has been stopping by for an hour in the afternoons and it is just enough distraction to cook and get food on the table.
Week 5 has been a turn around for how she sees us. She has intermittently called me "mom" and "Mrs. Michelle". When she calls me "mom", Jack immediately corrects her and says, "No! That is not your mommy." I quickly correct him and let him know that I am for right now. Poor guy just does not get it..but really...what 3 year old can possibly understand?
At school today, she (with her teacher) wrote, "My name is Miss D. I love: Michelle, Keegan, Jack and Jonathan." My heart skipped a beat when I read that. Then after school, we were watching Yo Gabba Gabba, the family episode, and she said that she was in our family with a really sweet smile.
Her favorite song (ironically) to sing right now is "I love you, you love me...we're a happy fama-wee." Keep singing that Miss D and hopefully it will become a reality! (wow..I just rhymed)
God is really amazing. I could just cry writing this next part in pure happiness. God has not abandoned me. Jen Hatemaker wrote this post that I totally identified with it. It is so good to have encouragement! Also, I have a friend from church named Karen who got a 3 year old (Tia) and 5 month old (Annie) placement 5 years ago. (they are adopted now) I have been talking to her on and off and I feel like she is the only person right now that fully gets me in all of this. She has been there. She knows what I am feeling. Well...guess what? Annie is on Keegan's soccer team and I nearly screamed in excitement when they walked up to our first practice tonight. I no longer have to play phone tag with Karen because I get to talk to her every Thursday and Saturday for a while. Praise God for His provision in my life. I can get some steady encouragement from someone who walked in my shoes. I love you Lord...you knew what I needed.
Oh and yes.
I am an ordained "soccer mom" now. Yes, 5pm and I am putting 3 sets of shin guards on with those crazy long socks.
Awesome.
Now I just need a mini van.
This week we have turned over a new leaf. Not to say that we want digress, but Miss D has stopped her tantrums quickly and the hitting has been few and far between. I can actually breathe and enjoy life as a family of 5. My neighbor Tawanda has been stopping by for an hour in the afternoons and it is just enough distraction to cook and get food on the table.
Week 5 has been a turn around for how she sees us. She has intermittently called me "mom" and "Mrs. Michelle". When she calls me "mom", Jack immediately corrects her and says, "No! That is not your mommy." I quickly correct him and let him know that I am for right now. Poor guy just does not get it..but really...what 3 year old can possibly understand?
At school today, she (with her teacher) wrote, "My name is Miss D. I love: Michelle, Keegan, Jack and Jonathan." My heart skipped a beat when I read that. Then after school, we were watching Yo Gabba Gabba, the family episode, and she said that she was in our family with a really sweet smile.
Her favorite song (ironically) to sing right now is "I love you, you love me...we're a happy fama-wee." Keep singing that Miss D and hopefully it will become a reality! (wow..I just rhymed)
God is really amazing. I could just cry writing this next part in pure happiness. God has not abandoned me. Jen Hatemaker wrote this post that I totally identified with it. It is so good to have encouragement! Also, I have a friend from church named Karen who got a 3 year old (Tia) and 5 month old (Annie) placement 5 years ago. (they are adopted now) I have been talking to her on and off and I feel like she is the only person right now that fully gets me in all of this. She has been there. She knows what I am feeling. Well...guess what? Annie is on Keegan's soccer team and I nearly screamed in excitement when they walked up to our first practice tonight. I no longer have to play phone tag with Karen because I get to talk to her every Thursday and Saturday for a while. Praise God for His provision in my life. I can get some steady encouragement from someone who walked in my shoes. I love you Lord...you knew what I needed.
Oh and yes.
I am an ordained "soccer mom" now. Yes, 5pm and I am putting 3 sets of shin guards on with those crazy long socks.
Awesome.
Now I just need a mini van.
Thursday, September 1, 2011
The End of Myself
(This might be really depressing for you to read, but I want to document this from an honest approach. In Miss D's words "I ain't" going to sugarcoat anything.)
Week 4 has been very hard. I can not even really describe it to people, it is that challenging. Miss D hit this mean streak of hitting Keegan and Jack, shouting, throwing fits, etc....ALL DAY. From what my Arrow rep says it is very normal for them to hit this wall at some point and their emotions play out their aggression. They are looking into some play therapy for her to help her with this transition.
I had several melt downs of my own this week of full fledged crying. I am not this kind of person but I could not pull myself together. I had so many emotions that I wished that I was not having. I wondered if I made a mistake bringing her into my family. I asked myself if I could love her the way that I loved my children. Could I work within CPS limits and not spank...because nothing else is working. I thought we dug ourselves in this hole and now there was no way out. My self-control was being tested beyond belief. Nat called yesterday and in that moment I would of sent it to voice mail but instead I answered it for her to talk me down and lower my blood pressure.
The message that her and others have been saying to me over and over is that I must put my eternal eyes on. I know that...I really do...but in the moment it is hard. However, one thing she said hit home with me. I have come to the end of myself so that God can take over. Surrender all that I am. I was there. I did not even want to wake up the next morning to start again. The white flag had been pulled to the top of my flagstaff. I have no other option but to let Him flow through me to work through the next few weeks. What an amazing testimony to be at that place to KNOW HE IS ABLE even in my weakness. I remember Jerrell Altic telling me once, "To truly follow God is not comfortable". Yep, sure isn't.
Luckily last night I was able to go to Lupe's with some friends. (Mexican food fixes most everything for the moment!) My poor friend Stacie was the witness to my tears...I am so glad that I have amazing friends to be real with. Seriously, what would I do without the body of Christ? To have amazing prayer warriors fighting the enemy alongside me and begging God to intervene...there is nothing like it.
This morning I woke up with a different resolve. In way I felt God get in the driver seat. I was actually able to praise Miss D and love on her differently today. The smell of her shampoo used to make me queasy because of all the stress that I associated with it. Today, she even smelled different. Weird I know. Her fits even seemed considerably less. I could actually give her a couple of stickers for good behavior. I know that this road will have many turns, but today was a good drive through the Hill Country. Calm.
God also is able to bless. This morning I tried to pay my cell bill and realized that my roll over minutes had expired and thus landing me with a $172.00 bill. I called AT&T and without even asking this guy took it off and gave me 1000 roll over minutes. I wanted to reach through the phone and hug the guy...it almost made me cry. I was able to put Miss D on the same team as Jack for soccer, even after the sign ups ended. The most surprising blessing was my neighbor Tawanda. She showed up at the door at 4:30 and let herself in. She was born at 20 something weeks and now at 23 she is a very high functioning adult. She lives down the street from me and walks the neighborhood. Normally, it would annoy me, but today, it was a great distraction. I was able to get dinner together with her entertaining Miss D. She spent a good 30 min. playing with my kids. I invited her back next week. :) I might even pay her to come do this for me in the afternoons. I bonded with her a little over VBS week when she rode with me and helped me with the boys. A couple months later, I am thankful for our little friendship.
We leave tomorrow to go to Mansfield for the weekend for my cousins wedding. I am hoping that this will be a good experience for all of us. Some good family time is needed. A good drive will be good too...every child strapped in and hopefully asleep.
Week 4 has been very hard. I can not even really describe it to people, it is that challenging. Miss D hit this mean streak of hitting Keegan and Jack, shouting, throwing fits, etc....ALL DAY. From what my Arrow rep says it is very normal for them to hit this wall at some point and their emotions play out their aggression. They are looking into some play therapy for her to help her with this transition.
I had several melt downs of my own this week of full fledged crying. I am not this kind of person but I could not pull myself together. I had so many emotions that I wished that I was not having. I wondered if I made a mistake bringing her into my family. I asked myself if I could love her the way that I loved my children. Could I work within CPS limits and not spank...because nothing else is working. I thought we dug ourselves in this hole and now there was no way out. My self-control was being tested beyond belief. Nat called yesterday and in that moment I would of sent it to voice mail but instead I answered it for her to talk me down and lower my blood pressure.
The message that her and others have been saying to me over and over is that I must put my eternal eyes on. I know that...I really do...but in the moment it is hard. However, one thing she said hit home with me. I have come to the end of myself so that God can take over. Surrender all that I am. I was there. I did not even want to wake up the next morning to start again. The white flag had been pulled to the top of my flagstaff. I have no other option but to let Him flow through me to work through the next few weeks. What an amazing testimony to be at that place to KNOW HE IS ABLE even in my weakness. I remember Jerrell Altic telling me once, "To truly follow God is not comfortable". Yep, sure isn't.
Luckily last night I was able to go to Lupe's with some friends. (Mexican food fixes most everything for the moment!) My poor friend Stacie was the witness to my tears...I am so glad that I have amazing friends to be real with. Seriously, what would I do without the body of Christ? To have amazing prayer warriors fighting the enemy alongside me and begging God to intervene...there is nothing like it.
This morning I woke up with a different resolve. In way I felt God get in the driver seat. I was actually able to praise Miss D and love on her differently today. The smell of her shampoo used to make me queasy because of all the stress that I associated with it. Today, she even smelled different. Weird I know. Her fits even seemed considerably less. I could actually give her a couple of stickers for good behavior. I know that this road will have many turns, but today was a good drive through the Hill Country. Calm.
God also is able to bless. This morning I tried to pay my cell bill and realized that my roll over minutes had expired and thus landing me with a $172.00 bill. I called AT&T and without even asking this guy took it off and gave me 1000 roll over minutes. I wanted to reach through the phone and hug the guy...it almost made me cry. I was able to put Miss D on the same team as Jack for soccer, even after the sign ups ended. The most surprising blessing was my neighbor Tawanda. She showed up at the door at 4:30 and let herself in. She was born at 20 something weeks and now at 23 she is a very high functioning adult. She lives down the street from me and walks the neighborhood. Normally, it would annoy me, but today, it was a great distraction. I was able to get dinner together with her entertaining Miss D. She spent a good 30 min. playing with my kids. I invited her back next week. :) I might even pay her to come do this for me in the afternoons. I bonded with her a little over VBS week when she rode with me and helped me with the boys. A couple months later, I am thankful for our little friendship.
We leave tomorrow to go to Mansfield for the weekend for my cousins wedding. I am hoping that this will be a good experience for all of us. Some good family time is needed. A good drive will be good too...every child strapped in and hopefully asleep.
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