One Week Home

And Mama is Sick!

I woke up from naps Friday snotty and sneezy, and it has turned into a colossal cold!  I have to say, though, I have the best husband, ever.  Not only did he run to the store for orange juice, ginger ale, and lotion kleenex, he ran the house yesterday and let me rest.  He is the epitome of long suffering, too.  I had come downstairs to help with lunch.  I may have been a little cranky, and I was certainly exhausted and miserable, when he did something mildly annoying.  Unfortunately, I happened to be feeding Luke at the time.  Before I could even think twice, there was a spoonful of corn & sweet potato baby food splashed into his plate.  He kept right on eating.  I'm lucky.  Being that we're all a bit sleep deprived, he could have been really ticked at me.  

My mom was here Friday to pick Annaliese up for a visit, and she got to meet the new kids.  We took a few photos of all the girls of the family.  

And just the matchy girls.  I may have had a little Chez Ami clearance section shopping accident while we were waiting.  

Please pray for us!  I need to be well enough to take the girls to Shriners tomorrow.  The kids start VBS tomorrow, as well.  (Well, most of them.  We'll have to see about the one who came to my door at 5 a.m. to tell me he threw up.  Don't you wish you had my glamorous life?)

Paul is off at church with most of the kids.  I've got the babies and the sickies here with me.  Josiah scored HUGE points when he said, "I can watch them [hack,hack,gasp] while you go take a shower."  I was up the stairs in a flash.  Oh yes I was.  

After my shower, I vacuumed.  Sounds silly, but you have to imagine 8 children eating over carpet for several days, and then it makes more sense.  I HAD TO vacuum.  Now I'm tired again, but at least the floor isn't so scary.  

I had hoped that one week in, we'd be a little farther along than what we are, but it is what it is, I suppose.  Jet lag is still in effect.  Nights are still grim ordeals.  Last night, I'd had Nyquil (how I love thee!) so the first couple times Luke woke up, I handed him a bottle by Braille and went back to bed.  Mistake!  His diapers cannot possibly take that much liquid.  I found myself changing the baby AND his bed in the wee (snicker) hours.  

Katie continues to settle in well.  She gets along with the other kids, and was hugging Jack this morning.  It was very sweet.  She is terrified of the cat, and has yet to communicate much beyond nodding and shaking her head.  She will repeat "more" for more food, but has not yet said it spontaneously.  Same with signing "all done."  She will imitate the sign (sometimes) but it's so much easier to whine or grunt and expect people to read your mind, that it doesn't occur to her to sign to get down.  

The first couple referrals for Luke came in yesterday's mail.  He's authorized for half a dozen visits to the UC Davis MIND Institute.  I don't even know where that is.  Should be interesting.  I need to get them in to see our dentist.  Luke grinds his teeth, and it's like trying to sleep with a cricket in my room. Except one that sounds like fingernails on chalkboard.  I have no idea what they'll suggest for it, but I'm up for trying it, whatever it is.

Hannah is still trying to find her new place.  So we're seeing a lot of, "Look at me!" behaviors, and "forgetting" the rules and responsibilities.  Normal stuff, which I think would roll off me a lot easier if I were getting enough sleep.  

Hopefully week 2 will bring us closer to our new normal.  Whatever that will be.