Annual Pumpkin Pilgrimage

We don't let an October go by without heading over to my friend Abby's farm to pick out our pumpkins. Of course, the pumpkins are just an excuse. We really go there to see the animals. Abby keeps goats, pigs, bunnies, chickens, cows (I love the calf the best), and the requisite barn cat. Merrilee could have spent the entire day feeding the goats...and they probably would have been more than happy to oblige! The kids enjoy running through the straw maze, but I noticed this year that the challenge is diminished. Merrilee is now tall enough to see over the top of the straw bales, and Jacob is catching up with her.
Daddy was home for a visit, so that made the trip to the farm even more exciting. He isn't much into livestock, but there is something about a sweet, charming outdoor cat that bewitches him.

Here's the baby cow. Such a dear. I cannot resist those beautiful eyes and soft ears. Have you ever petted or hugged a calf? It's one of those things you should do at least once in your lifetime. You wouldn't think an animal with hooves could be so gentle, soft and sweet. I think maybe we should go back again soon, before she grows up.
We bought four pumpkins, one of which has already been cooked. More on that later.

Blessings,

Petrie

Odds and Ends From This Past Week

Thursday we got to work and made the fleece blanket for Baby Sister. I've made one of these simple blankets for each of the kids, and they've always been a favorite for snuggling and watching TV. Hope this one gets just as much use as the Ladybug blanket and the Football blanket have.


Merrilee has finally mastered cartwheels. She's been working on some "pre-cartwheel" moves in gymnastics class, but I've never seen her actually do one in class. Yesterday I asked her if she could do it, and Voila! She did. I think she was just as surprised as me. Then I made her do half a dozen more for the camera.

This girl also has a mean football arm. I started teaching her to throw when she was two. She was a quick study and has made me proud! I love playing football with her.

We made sugar cookie pumpkins yesterday evening. Actually, I let the kids do all the work. I just journaled the event via camera. They had a blast and kept the mess much smaller than I expected. The cookies were all gone as of this afternoon. We'll have to make more before Daddy comes home.

Merrilee's Masterpieces.

Jacob's Works of Art.

October Horrors

I was just going through some old photos from Octobers past, as I love to do at the beginning of each new month. I don't know if I'm just nostalgic, but I love checking back and seeing how the kids have changed even if it was only a couple years ago. I also enjoy being reminded of what we did in previous years at about the same time. So tonight I was looking at October 2006 photos and found the ones where we took the kids to the pumpkin farm, made scarecrows for the front yard, and went on a hike at a local nature trail.

And that's when I found them...the photos of Jacob's first experience with a pumpkin. The first photo was great! You can see the excitement in his eyes as he sees the glorious innards exposed. And what joy he anticipates as he follows his sister's lead in preparation of the evisceration.





In October 2006 Jacob was drawing near his third birthday. He had been home with us a full 11-1/2 months, and had experienced most, but not all of the holiday traditions that come with life in America. In fact, we first met Jacob on October 31 the previous year, so this thing with the pumpkin was the last stone left unturned. But Merrilee seemed eager to get started, so how bad could it be?




He took the plunge, but with a respectable amount of precaution. Well, the last picture shows it all. THE HORROR! WHAT MANNER OF DISGUST! THE FILTH!





I don't remember taking this series of pictures, but I am so glad I did! Have you ever seen such unleashed emotion on a child's face? Just keep going back and forth between the first photo and the last. The transformation is amazing! This is beautiful! I'm going to be laughing all night.

Happy First Day of October, Everyone!

Hugs,
Petrie

County Fair

We went to the fair with some friends this afternoon. I'm just going to let the photos speak for themselves. G'night.

Catching Up

I couldn't believe it when I noticed I haven't updated since August 29th. Sorry about that. I've been really busy with home schooling and the kids' activities. I'm glad we're busy, but sometimes the small things get away from me. I do manage to keep up with the laundry, but things like uploading the photos from my digital camera just don't get done.

Both kids are really enjoying the home school experience. I'm so thankful that it's working out. I originally planned to give Jacob a one-month trial to see if he liked being at home and if I could handle both of them in the same classroom. We are now at the six week mark, and we're all happy with the arrangement. Jacob works in his preschool workbooks, is learning his short vowel sounds, and is participating in some of his sister's math and science lessons. Merrilee is now officially taking weekly spelling tests, excelling in second-grade math (though some of the math facts stump her), is reading well above average for a 5-year old, and is breezing through phonics. Science is her favorite subject and she's eager to start American history next spring. We do most of our work in the 9am-12pm time frame, though I've also had the blessing of sleeping in a little later when I want to. No 8:30 am runs to take Jacob to preschool. I'm so glad I didn't re-enroll this year. That was just a huge added stress.

Both kids are enjoying their sports: Merrilee in gymnastics and Jacob in Tae Kwon Do. He is going up for his white stripe belt test this Saturday. This will put him between a white belt and a yellow belt. Every now and then we deal with a little jealousy where Merrilee wants to take Tae Kwon Do or Jacob wants to be in gymnastics, but the rules are firm. I'm not letting them be in the same sport. I don't want them to compete and hurt the others' feelings inadvertently. Merrilee is very agile and would excel in TKD, and I just don't want Jacob to feel any additional pressure from her. They are the best of friends, but when they are outside playing and we run or play football, he is usually the underdog. I want to feel like he's the family pro at TKD. He's doing great at it, and we've seen so much improvement in his physical stamina, balance, and overall gross motor skills. Where medicine has failed us in his gross motor delays, TKD has picked up the slack. He can now throw a punch or kick without ending up on his back. Just four months ago that wasn't possible. He's looking forward to the Championship Tournament in October where all the kids compete in various fields of TKD: sparring, forms, board breaking, kicks, etc. Everyone goes home with some sort of patch or prize, so even though he's not "killer", I know he'll enjoy it and feel like he's done something worthwhile.

On the home front, we're gearing up for fall and packing up the summer. We emptied our pool yesterday and today, and tomorrow it goes back in the box. I am also pulling out my gingerbread recipes, wearing my warm jammies at night, and thinking about the fall decorations in the attic. I guess it's time to plan for a trip to the pumpkin farm and light my Fall Harvest candle. Mmmmmm...cinnamon and spice. Love this time of year!

I hope all of you are doing well, and that you are relishing the cool evenings (if you're on the east coast). We were downright cold last night. I love sleeping with the windows open though. There's just such a short time you can do that before frost starts. Have a blessed first day of autumn next week.

Hugs,

Petrie

Encouraged and Hopeful, Even in Our Grief

Today I received a note from a pediatric cardiologist who reviewed our new daughter's file. His words were encouraging in that they provided hope that surgery and cardiac supervision could help her lead a normal life. It is gladness, in these circumstances, to breathe a sigh of relief and move forward leaving behind so many of the phantom worries we concoct in our minds. We know that we face weeks or even months of hospital stays, scary surgeries, and the possibility of complications. However, when one reads a report that indicates "it is manageable in the hands of an experienced surgical team at one of the national pediatric cardiac surgical centers," the burden of the heart is lifted and we look to the future with hope.

That being said, there is never a guarantee that any of us will live long healthy lives. A family with our agency just adopted a little girl this summer. The child had an uncorrected heart defect and went in for a catheterization on Monday. She coded during the procedure and the doctor had to perform CPR manually for 45 minutes. She was put on life support. She never regained consciousness and a CT yesterday showed her brain had been damaged beyond hope. She died yesterday. It is very sad for all of us. Her heart was not even the cause of her death. An artery was nicked during the cath procedure, and though it’s only about a 1% risk, it happened. Though this is the ultimate dread of any parent, and great cause of grief for all of us, it also gives us reason to hope.

We cannot live our lives fearing what may lie ahead based on our own understanding of circumstances. We see trouble all around us. Any number of things could occupy our thoughts and make us fear the future; many things we spend time worrying about and trying to fix, when in the end they have little impact on us at all.

But we have a hope in the Providence of God. He is in control. He knows our every need, and before any one of us came into being, he knew the number of our days. He cares for us. He cares for the little child who needs a loving family. Whether her life is to be long and lively, or short and complicated, He provides. This sweet child who left us yesterday knew the touch of a mother, the playful laugh of a daddy, and the fellowship of a sister before her days were over. What a loving God to let this little one experience such love in her last weeks! God cares. He provides what we need. Even if we don't understand what those needs are, He does. And He does it all with love. Yes, the little one's family grieves now, but they are filled with the loving memories of their little girl, and their hearts are full with the joy of knowing God entrusted the last days of her lives to them. What a privilege!


So even if our own little girls's heart has so many problems, we remain hopeful in knowing that she is in the Lord’s hand, no matter what. And we will face each day submitting to His will for her life. We are just there to provide whatever He wills for her, as He cares for her during her time on this earth. When we made this decision to adopt her, despite all her heart problems, the one question that I kept coming back to is "If she died soon after we got her, would it be worth it?" and the answer in my heart was "Yes."

I am still struck that right on the heels of our own decision to adopt her, this family suffered such sadness. But I can truly say, I understand how they can feel such joy in their grief. It IS worth it. And God cares. He provides.

Blessings to you all,
Petrie

Trip to Pennsylvania

We spent the weekend at a reunion with some of the families who shared our first trip to China. Merrilee and the girls spent some time getting to know each other, and had a blast at Knoebels amusement park. It is a wonderful little park and has so much to do for little ones. Look into it if you haven't been there before. The admission is free you just buy coupon books of tickets to ride the rides. Other than food (lunch, lots of bottles of water, two cotton candies, and a caramel apple), the rides only cost us $20! And that was for two children and the occasional adult riding with them.

The drive took us a good six hours going up because of some traffic emergencies resulting in detours. But on the way home it was only about 5 hours with a pretty long stop at McD's.

The kids didn't want to leave, but alas, all fun times come to an end. We enjoyed spending the time with families who are dear to our heart, and really wish we all lived closer so we could enjoy watching our girls grow up knowing each other even better. But we felt blessed for the time we had. We will have another reunion in the future, and hope the families that couldn't make it this year will be able to come another time.