This last week has been an adventure. If I hadn't had a few posts already scheduled to post, there would be nothing. That's ok. My life has been full of emotion and change lately.
I won't even try to put in every detail, but I will give you an overview of the last week.
Friday and Saturday were a lot of hurry up and wait. I had the big kids stay in the house so these nervous little ones wouldn't be overwhelmed. Finally the children arrive. Crying. Hysterically. Hmm. This never crossed my mind. Why would these children be excited to see me? They have no reason to even like me right now. Wow. I've been so wrapped up in my excitement I didn't consider this. I knew there would be some anxiety and worry, but this I did not plan for. I quickly call out the big kids and tell the little ones that there are legos and barbies in the big play room. That at least gets them in the house and distracted while the adults remove their belongings from the car. Everything is in large trash bags. That made me sad.
It only took a few minutes (20 maybe) for the children to calm down. We walked around the house and showed them all the rooms. I didn't want to go over rules right now - there is plenty of time for that later. I did, however, mention the no boys in girls rooms and vise versa rule.
By 1 we are at the pool. I was able to find clothes to swim in since neither one had a swim suit. These kids have so much energy! We live close enough to walk, so we burned off energy that way. We only stayed about an hour. The little one (5yo) was hungry.
We walked back to the house, eating cereal bars the entire way. He was no longer hungry.
Big Boy had been invited to a friends house. I wasn't sure if we would be able to make it, because I wasn't sure if the kids would be able to handle going to another house and socializing. I figured we would go. They seemed to be doing fine.
I am so glad we went! The kids all rode horses and ponies, played with bunnies and chickens, looked for chicken eggs, played in the yard, rode bikes, ate crawfish and met people who were so sweet and loving. By the time we left everyone was exhausted, mosquito bitten, and ready for bed. After quick showers all of us fell asleep quickly.
Sunday - Only church today. No banjo and no Awana. Church was fun and the children loved it. Afterward we had a quick trip to Boy Scouts to post flags. I wasn't sure if neaps were needed, so we just went home and played.
Monday - Wednesday - Are you ready for vu-vu-vu-vbs!? Yes! What a fun way to start the week with a new family. Both kids loved the fun and excitement offered at vbs. Little M (7yo girl) is now asking a lot of questions about Jesus, His death, and the Bible. Little T (5 yo boy) asked to pray for me one night. He said "Thank you for these beautiful people. And these beautiful pets. Amen." It's a start. I know it makes God smile.
Thursday - I won't (don't know if I can) go into the details of the battle with cps already, but the kids had a family visit today.
Friday - More vbs! Since Big Boy, Big Girl and I all worked we all were served lunch after vbs today. What a blessing. The church provided lunch for all 6 of us. This not only took stress off me to rush home and make something before a much needed nap, it also gave the kids more time with their friends. I'm not sure if it is vbs or their age, but these 2 take great naps!
Saturday - another busy day. Big Girl was dropped off at church for a car wash, then the rest of us went to the mall for a rare treat. Big Boy is going to Africa, I wanted to stop and get him his favorite meal on the way. We also had time to wander around for about 20 minutes. After getting to the church (an hour early - I put the wrong time in my calendar) we played in one of the big grassy areas and watched turtles and bugs in the pond. Once Big Boy was on his way, we picked up Big Girl and played with some of the other big kids that were still at the church. After a great nap (I'm talking 2-3 hour naps!) we went for a nice long walk in the new wagon to pass out invites for the hot dog party. The little ones loved racing to houses to tape up invites :)
This has been a great (mostly) first week. One thing hubby and I noticed was that in all the training we were taught what to do with bad behavior. Kids that have been abused and will take out their emotions in a negative and unacceptable way. I know those kids are out there. I have met some. I have heard stories of some of them as well. But what about the good kids? The ones that are so desperate to be wanted, loved, and accepted they will go out of their way to please you? What about the kids that instantly bond with you? The ones that are calling you mommy and daddy within hours? None of the classes will prepare you for that.
Honestly, I don't feel like any of the classes prepared me (cpr and first aid don't count!). The extra hours of work, the extra dishes, potty training (it's been 8 years since I have tried to potty train!), the extra voices calling 'mommy' when you are on the phone. What I do know, is that God will qualify me since He has called me!
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