One of Those Days

I guess it's just one of those days. I just feel like the stress and the minutiae of life is smothering me right now. I know that this is a temporary feeling, probably brought on by hormones and a string of irritating events, but I just feel *down*. We're still waiting on foster care, meanwhile, things at work are getting worse by the day. My kids start back to school soon, and I was so hoping to steal some time with them before it started. I dropped food on my shirt. Maybe I should go to sleep and start again...

... waiting... waiting.... forever waiting

Hello Everyone!

Sorry that it's been awhile since my last post, but things have been crazy here. I gave Amber a baby shower last weekend, which went really well if I do say so myself (check out Amber's blog for pics!). I baked 2 bathtub cakes in 4 days time! We also had some out-of-town visitors for the weekend... Harry and Bailey! They came in for Amber's shower. They were so much help... thanks you guys!!!!

On the foster care front, we have good news!! Our background checks came back last week, and we are officially, again, certified foster parents. Now we're just back to waiting for a placement. Oddly, it doesn't seem like so much of a pins-and-needles kind of wait anymore, what with all of the hurdles we've jumped and the time that it has taken. So, all of you in cyberland, thank you so much for all of the prayers. And, please pray for us some more!

That's all for now, but we're still waiting on "THE" phonecall, and I'll let you know when it happens. Here are some pics of our recent escapades:

The First Duckie Cake

Here are the kids hanging out at John's parent's pool

Here's a picture that did not go *quite* as planned

Here's my baby... snuggled up with his wittle beaw!

And... finally.... my budding actor:

Random Juli, Vol. 1

My daughter sometimes says the most random things. I thought I would share it with you...

So, while John and I were cooking on Monday, I put Sesame Street on the big TV. When we came back, Juli had lined her dolls and stuffed animals on our couch. John asked her what their names are, and she went down the line, "This one is Brady, this one is Helen, This one is Hannah, this one is (fill in random normal names here), and this one is Vitamin, and THIS one is SELFISH!!!!

LOL!?!?!?

Blessed!

Sometimes I forget to give the credit where it's due. Sometimes in the fast pace life we live, I forget who's holding our hand and keeping us afloat. Sometimes I forget that everything that happens, good or bad, is just a little part of God's plan for us. So, praise him in your successes as well as your failures. We are Blessed!

Charbroiled

Hello again all! I'm so happy to be home! We did have alot of fun, although it was also pretty irritating at times. It was so extremely hot. The last day there was a heat advisory, and it actually was supposed to be 105 degrees. I'm not sure if it actually got all the way there, but it really felt like it! And, of course, I got sunburned- charbroiled, really. The worst part, though, was missing the kids. It was a nice break for the first day, and then I just missed them so much that I could barely stand it. So - never again. From now on, if we're going somewhere, we're taking the kids with us. Lesson learned!

Drum Roll Please!!!!

Dave and Bhakti are having a girl!!!!! John and I are so excited to have a niece on the way, and the kids are excited about the idea of a new baby cousin.

Well, we are off to King's Dominion in the morning. I'll update you probably on Monday!!

We Made It!

We're back! The trip to NC went relatively well. We didn't get to see Dave and Bhakti very much, just on the evening of the 4th, but she was looking very pregnant! They are supposed to go tomorrow for their ultrasound, so I might get to update tomorrow on the sex of the newest Paul.

On the good side, Harry and Bailey were with us the whole time! They even stayed at John's parents house. We felt so much more comfortable. And, it was just really good to see them. Hopefully, we'll see them again soon.

Katie was there the whole time too. The kids had a great time with her, and we were able to take all three to the park and to lunch on Saturday. I just miss her already.

Here's some pics from the trip!

Dad and Kids riding the carousel.

You can almost hear them say, "You can't catch us! Na na na na naaaaah!"

Katie, enjoying the carousel.

Pilot #1

Pilot #2

The kids rode the train around the park. You can see they enjoyed it!