New Blog

So, I have decided to write about more than just the adoption.

Find it at: http://thosebruceboys.blogspot.com

A BIG Milestone for Mommy

Yesterday was a huge milestone for me. I was wrestling Nathan (in an effort to change a dirty diaper) and Aiden was laying on the floor just a few feet away from me fiddling with some toy. I was about to break a sweat trying to get the diaper on Nathan. Aiden just calmly said, "Mommy?" I said, "Yeah buddy?" "I wub you." This is the first time that I can remember that Aiden has told me that he loves me out of the blue. Sure, he says it when we put him to sleep and we tell him that we love him, but this is the first time that he said it all on his own, really for no reason. It melted my heart.

Although it is so sweet to hear any of your children say, "I love you" just because they want to, this is particularly special to me. The first couple months were not good between Aiden and me. I remember Kenneth having to reassure me and say things like, "I just know that when he walks across the stage at his high school graduation, you will never believe the special bond you have with him and how muc h you love him." At one point I just didn't know if that was ever going to happen (the special bond part). Wow! God has brought us both a long way in just a year.

Even more than that, I cherish those words because it reveals so much to me. I feel like it communicates so much more than just an "I love you." He truly feels like I am his "mommy" and there is no other woman that he thinks about in that regard. He seems to have no recollection of his birth mother. Part of that makes me very sad, but another part of that is comforting that he is not confused about my role in his life. I also feel like it communicates his comfort and happiness with his life right now. It seems like he feels he has always been a part of our family and he doesn't remember otherwise. I love the fact that he has adjusted so well and is a happy little boy. It is what we dreamed for him when we first laid eyes on him. I praise God for the work He has done in Aiden, and what He has graciously accomplished in and through us by allowing us to be Aiden's Mommy and Daddy.

GOTCHA DAY VIDEO

This is a link to the video we made to celebrate our Gotcha Day, June 3, 2010. Praying that God uses this video to show our children how much we love them, to share our story with others, and hopefully to inspire other families to consider adoption.

Bruce Family Gotcha Day

Our First Few Moments

On June 3 we celebrated the one year anniversary of meeting Aiden and Asa for the first time. I will never forget what the moments felt like. I remember flying into the Ethiopian airport at 3 in the morning. We were so tired, but excited that we were back in Africa. Strangely, Kenneth and I both feel so “at home” in Africa. Even the thought of the smells bring a smile to my face.

By the time we got to the guest house where we were staying we were able to get about two hours of sleep before we left for the transition house. We were exhausted but racing with a million emotions.

As we walked into the transition house we were greeted by several children and I kept looking for Aiden. Sue, our case worker, told us that the boys were waiting for us upstairs in a special room. She gave us a quick tour of the orphanage which I barely remember. We walked up a flight of stairs and with each step the knots in my stomach tightened. I felt like I could hardly make it up the stairs.

We followed Sue into a room and I heard her say, “Do you recognize these guys?” I only saw Aiden. I don’t remember feeling anything. I just got down on his level and I was so worried about overwhelming him or scaring him. He didn’t know me, not really. He had maybe looked at our picture a few times, but he had no idea that I was his new mommy. He could not even understand a word coming out of my mouth. I started holding his hands and telling him I was so happy to see him and that I loved him. Aiden was so shy.

I looked up and saw a nanny handing Asa over to Kenneth. I could not believe he was our baby. He looked so weak and sickly. Nothing like the energetic little baby we had seen in the first pictures of him. Although he had a hard time holding up his own head, he was full of precious smiles.

The first few hours with the boys are mostly a blur. We went to the embassy after leaving the transition house. When our name was called we anxiously walked up the stairs. The real final step in getting the boys home. After a few short questions a man said to us, “Do you understand that this adoption is final and that it can never be reversed?” We said, “Yes.” He then stamped a piece of paper and said, “Congratulations.” That was it. We walked down the stairs holding OUR boys.

For All The Kids Who Have No Mommy & Daddy

Every night during our family worship time we pray for a country around the world. I love that we have added this to our ritual (Bible story, Catechisms, Praying for the world, and sometimes a song). We were inspired by David Platt's book "Radical" in which he challenges believers to literally pray for the world. You can do this systematically through a book called "Operation World" which lists every country in the world along with some facts about each country.

The other night we were praying for Ivory Coast, which is in Africa. The boys love getting a chance to say their own prayer for the country. That particular night Aiden wanted to pray first and his prayer was "Jesus, thank you for Ivory Coast. Pray for all the kids who have no mommy and daddy. Give them good sleep. Pray for Mommy, Daddy, Noah, Asa and baby." I could have cried. It truly blessed my heart to hear my son, who at one time did not have a mommy or a daddy, praying for other little boys and girls on his birth continent who do not have a mommy or a daddy.

My prayer is that God would continue to open up hearts toward adoption and that people would be obedient to that blessed (though sometimes tough) calling. I pray that all those children around the world would find a forever Mommy and Daddy. And I also praise God that He allowed me to be Aiden's Mommy. He is ONE LESS orphan. Glory to God!!!

A Year Ago Today...

ONE YEAR AGO today I received a very important phone call that changed my life. I was at home with Noah, playing in the back yard, and I went inside to grab something. While I was in the house the phone rang.

We never get calls on our home phone.

I answered and heard a voice say, "Congratulations Mommy!" What?! I remember thinking, "There is no way!" I was expecting a phone call or e-mail the next day because I knew our court date took place some time in the middle of the night (Ethiopia time is about 8 hours ahead). This was way sooner than I expected. The voice continued, "You passed court!" The only thing I could get out was, "Both of them?" I had heard so many people tell me that you usually do not pass court the first time, and we should really expect nothing since we were trying to adopt two boys who were not biological siblings. The chances of all the paperwork being there, the chances of both birth mothers showing up when they had to come from 14 hours away just to say that they could not take care of their boys, the chances of the judge being in a favorable mood, etc etc. On top of that we had the anxiety of, "What if she shows up and changes her mind?"

After Angela from our adoption agency confirmed that both boys had passed court I thanked her and hung up. I immediately called Kenneth with a huge lump in my throat. I told him the news and then ran outside to tell our neighbor, Gina. Funny, I had just finished talking with her before I went in the house and told her, "Yeah, we might not hear anything until the weekend. I'm not getting my hopes up. No one ever passes court the first time. But we do know that whatever happened has already happened." Between pushing Noah back and forth on the swing, telling him that he really did have 2 new brothers, and making several phone calls, I just wanted to burst into tears!

At that time I never would have imagined the life that I now live. I might have been a little scared if God would have given me even a glimpse at that time. I am so thankful that He has slowly and patiently led me to where we are today. He certainly knows what we can handle and when we can handle it, whether we feel like we are ready or not. Praise Him for that!

Although life is absolutely crazy and I have some really tough, rough days with all the boys...I WOULD NOT CHANGE IT. I feel so incredibly blessed that God called us to adopt and that he brought Aiden and Asa into our lives. I wouldn't want to imagine life without them! Sometimes I just look at them and think about the magnitude of the true miracle God has performed for our family.

Knock, Knock

So, this post is going to be one of those things that is really only funny if you know Aiden, and maybe not even then...
On Saturday we were eating lunch and the boys started telling "knock knock" jokes, only their knock knock jokes never make any sense. For example, we will hear: "Knock Knock." Who's there? "Table." Table who? "The table is brown." Mostly it is Noah coming up with the random jokes, laughing hysterically, and then Aiden repeats whatever Noah says, laughing hysterically. Then Kenneth and I laugh at how non-sensical it is. Anyway, on Saturday, Aiden made up his very own joke.
"Knock Knock."
"Who's there?"
"Horsie."
"Horsie who?"
"Secretariat!" He said it in the funniest little voice too.
We started cracking up! You have no idea how thankful Kenneth and I were that he actually knows Secretariat is a horse! And that he made up his own joke that he thought was sooo funny. It really made me think back to about 10 months ago when he could not even speak English. In those very trying first couple of months I never imagined that I would be hearing him tell jokes in English and for those jokes to make a half a bit of sense. God has brought him a long way! And me too.
When we first brought Aiden home I was convinced God was out to get me. (Not really, but it was rough). Aiden was so destructive, so defiant, so opposite of me in every way I could think of. He and Noah fought ALL the time. I struggled to get through the day with him. I blamed myself for how it seemed I messed up Noah. I remember asking God if there would ever be a day when I just loved Aiden so very very much without forcing myself.
Wow, what a blessing that those first months are a blur now. I love that boy so much! He is a joy (Well, about 98% of the time. haha) Sometimes I just look at him and get tears in my eyes thanking God that he was brought to us. I cannot imagine my life without him. I am thankful beyond words that God, and Aiden's biological mother, allowed him to be my son. I have delighted in watching him grow and become secure in our family. He seems so happy and carefree now. The transformation in just under a year has been nothing short of God's miraculous grace and power at work! What a sight to behold.

The Battle is the Lord's

As some may have heard recently beginning this month adoptions in Ethiopia will be cut by 90%. This does not mean that Ethiopia is now a closed country, but it does mean that the process will be much, much slower. We have several friends in the process of adopting from Ethiopia and it breaks my heart for them and the millions of orphans that may never find a "forever family." Someone in our adoption group posted this, and I am asking for others to join in this prayer effort!

"The Battle Is The Lord's"
I Samuel 12:47b

Best news...He NEVER Loses!!!

~Praying that every person that has anything to do with our children being ready to go into court will not be able to get their faces, names and situations off of their minds and hearts until they are ALL in court.

~Praying that the visable favor of almighty God rests on our children, on every document, every paper, every detail and signature of all of children's adoptions until they are set free, pass court, have birth certificates and VISAS!

~Praying James 1:5 - that the wisdom of God will flood the hearts and minds of Sue, Dejere, and EVERYONE at EVERY office and part of the process to free our children and bring them HOME to us. That creative ideas will come to their minds-even as they sleep to ensure our children's cases will be attended to promptly and thouroughly and not one item will be forgotten or overlooked in the name of Jesus!

~Praying that NO person dealing with any of our children will grow weary or be distracted from completing EVERY child's adoption paperwork quickly and correctly and our children will be HOME sooner than anyone could have dreamed or imagined!!!

~Praying that we will all be brought together in such a strong bond of spiritual unity for our children's lives -that every plot and scheme by any person and the enemy will be abandoned -and they will flee at the sight of our union of FAITH for our children's freedom!!!

~Praying that others will witness our strong stand of faith in our God and that it will cause lives to be changed and souls will be won into the Kingdom and God will receive ALL the GLORY!

~ Praying that NOBODY will grow weary -at any part of any of this process -that we will all lock arms and walk forward into this one step at a time - crushing the enemy EVER step of the WAY!

~ I am praying these things with GREAT expectancy and with GREAT FAITH in MY God who created our children and has a plan for their lives - a plan to give them a HOPE and a GOOD final outcome!!

~In The MIGHTY NAME OF JESUS AMEN and AMEN!!

So Much For Resolutions....

So much for New Year's Resolutions. Mine was to blog more. Seeing as how it is almost March and I haven't blogged since before Christmas, I would say I am off to a rough start. Oh well.

Life is good, but it is incredibly busy with 4 boys! There is never a dull moment in our house. Noah makes us laugh all the time, Aiden loves to follow Noah around and do whatever he is doing, Asa never stops moving and Nathan wants his share of the attention too. By the time we get everyone to bed and pick up just a little bit, we are exhausted!

Aiden is doing well with pre-school, as far as we can tell. We never get any bad reports, but he never talks about school either. He always tells me that he has a good day when he gets off the bus but that is about all I get from him. He is just in his own little world and that is just fine with him.

Asa is improving with his weekly occupational therapy. The biggest change we have seen is in his attention span. Before therapy he would not sit still for 30 seconds. Now he can concentrate long enough to listen to a very short book or play with blocks for a couple of minutes by himself. We feel like we have a long way to go, but there is improvement!

I look back at a year ago and cannot believe how life has changed. At this time last year we had just accepted our referrals for Aiden and Asa, and found out that I was pregnant with Nathan a week to the day later. Wow. When I look at my journal from that time I admit that some of my worst fears have come true but it isn't as bad as I thought it would be. I feared being so tired and so overwhelmed. I feared feeling like I didn't have enough time or attention to go around. I feared how crazy things would be with 4 boys. Although all of those things are true for our life right now it comes in the midst of enormous blessing as well. I cannot imagine life without any of my children. I think to myself, "Life would be so boring without all this chaos!"

Aiden's Liver Numbers are Normal!

Praise the Lord! I received a phone call yesterday from our pediatrician's office that Aiden's liver numbers are normal! We still don't really know what made them so high for so long, but it doesn't really matter now! Our doctor believes it was a result of the Hep-A taking a little longer than normal to cycle through his system.

We took a "gamble" last month by not going to see the specialist. To be quite honest we were just sick of all the doctor visits and medical bills that have been piling up. We knew that going to the specialist would cost more money and they would probably do the same tests that we have already done. Our pediatrician told us that because Aiden's numbers were on a downward cycle he felt like we could test him once more before going to the specialist. Thankfully his last test was on Wednesday of last week and no additional testing will need to be done.

Thank you to all of you who have been praying for this situation. We have seen God faithfully answer so many of our prayers in regards to our family. In my Bible reading yesterday God reminded me that no matter how crazy our life seems He has truly blessed us. There have been days that I just want to quit, but I know that God's plan for our family is going to be wonderful.

Psalm 16:5-6
"The Lord is the portion of my inheritance and my cup; You support my lot.
The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places; Indeed, my heritage is beautiful to me."

We Passed Court...Again!

Yesterday we had our final court case in our adoption. According to US law, we had to re-adopt the boys in order for them to be full US citizens. The boys came home on an I-4 visa, which means that they were permanent residents. Once the re-adoption goes through the boys become our children, as if we had them biologically but birthed them in a foreign country. They will even receive KY birth certificates.

Our court case passed yesterday morning and our boys officially became Adoniram Andrew and Asa Charles, citizens of the United States of America. The next few steps are pretty easy, as we will only need to file some paper work to get birth certificates and new social security cards. The paper work side of our adoption is almost complete! Last night I realized that our case here passed exactly 6 months from the date that we got off the plane with Aiden and Asa. God is definitely in the details!

I look back over the last 6 months and it is hard to believe all the changes that have taken place in my life. I am a different person. I can see how God has used these circumstances to refine me and show me just how much I need Him. I am in desperate need of His salvation and grace and the last 6 months have certainly proved that to be true! Yesterday in my devotions I was reading a passage out of psalms according to my "psalm reading schedule." It just so happened to be a passage that the Lord has put on my heart many times throughout the adoption (there are no coincidences when it comes to God's timing and His Word).

Psalm 126
When the LORD brought back the captive ones of Zion, We were like those who dream. Then our mouth was filled with laughter And our tongue with joyful shouting; Then they said among the nations, "The LORD has done great things for them." The LORD has done great things for us; We are glad. Restore our captivity, O LORD, As the streams in the South. Those who sow in tears shall reap with joyful shouting. He who goes to and fro weeping, carrying his bag of seed, Shall indeed come again with a shout of joy, bringing his sheaves with him.

Although there has been lots of weeping, yesterday was a day of joyful shouting! PRAISE THE LORD! HE IS ALWAYS GOOD.

Help is On the Way

"Help is on the way," the evaluated assured me. Yesterday morning we had someone come to evaluate Asa's behavior. I was afraid he would be a perfect angel while she was at our house, but thankfully he acted normal, well, Asa's normal. She got to see his head banging, his wild temper tantrums, and his random screaming. She also witnessed the constant motion. After asking me a few questions she asked if I had ever heard of sensory disorders. I said that I had done a little research after talking with a few moms about Asa's behavior.

The evaluator believes Asa has a sensory disorder which is basically a way of saying that his nervous system is not processing sensory information the way it should. Thus, his need for constant motion, constant banging, very loud screaming, etc. She is going to recommend that we see an occupational therapist once a week to help Asa regulate and calm down. I am not exactly sure all the therapy that is going to be involved, but I have been assured that it really helps. The evaluator said that with the occupational therapy we should start to see him become less frustrated, and thus we will be less frustrated. There is hope!

Asa also scored below normal in a few other categories of development, especially communication. However, I believe that this is a result of his inability to sit still and pay attention to what others are saying, etc. He is in his own little world most of the time and does not really focus on what anyone is doing around him. Once we get some of the sensory issues regulated, his communication should come right along.

Some time next week we will probably be talking with the intake coordinator from First Steps to figure out a plan for Asa. I am really looking forward to it!

Asa is Getting Evaluated

After a few months of struggling with Asa's behavior, I finally contacted First Steps to get Asa re-evaluated. This time for his crazy behavior! We had waited because when we described his behavior to most people they just said, "He is just being one!" Kenneth and I knew better, but we wanted to see if we could suck it up and manage. In the last few weeks, we have reached the point where we could not handle it. I called First Steps at the beginning of last week, and already on Friday the intake coordinator came by our house. Within about five to ten minutes of watching Asa she suggested that he might have some sensory issues. I have been thinking the same thing for about a month, but I wanted her to come to her own conclusions. Asa has already pre-qualified for a lengthy evaluation based on his communication and fine motor skills, and now for his behavior. We are praying that we can have him evaluated the week after Thanksgiving. If he does qualify for services, we can begin some occupational therapy right away. I am praising God that prayers have worked thus far, and there is some hope for sanity! I am sure that Asa will be thrilled to get any help he can with whatever is going on in his little body and mind.

Aiden's Surgery

Aiden had his surgery yesterday. He was not feeling good at all when he came home, but this morning he seems to be doing much better. He is walking around very tenderly and is not talking much but he is at least keeping medications down. We continue to pray for a speedy recovery, with as few days on the couch as possible. We are already on our 6th showing of the movie, "Cars" and there was a little "Toy Story" mixed in with that. I am so thankful that my parents are keeping Noah and Asa so that we can just focus on Aiden and Nathan as Aiden is recovering.

Aiden also just started preschool at the Early Learning Village last week. He has only been two days but he seems to really like it. He is already wanting to know when he can ride the school bus. He continues to do well at the Mother's Day Out program at the church and we have seem big improvements in his behavior as a result. I am thankful that Aiden is starting to pick up on things much faster and he is starting to talk so much more. His behavior and his language have both improvement dramatically! Praise God for the work that He has done in Aiden just in the 5 months that he has been home with us.

Our Newest Blessing

It has been way too long since I have updated the blog, but we have been a little busy. Baby Nathan decided to make his debut on October 1, exactly 20 days before he was due. What a pleasant suprise! The boys have been wonderful with him. Noah and Aiden are always arguing over who gets to hold the baby. Aiden wants to know where the baby is all the time and Noah wants to make sure that I am taking care of him properly. It is so nice to see them love their little brothers so much. I am going to have to remind them of this some day, I am sure.

Aiden has made so much progress! He is talking so much more now and we feel like a lot of this has to do with Noah. Noah is always encouraging him to talk and say new things. Aiden is also eager to carry on conversations with Noah so he is trying harder. They have really become best friends which is a blessing for us--except when they team up against us to get into trouble. :/ Aiden's behavoir has also improved dramatically. He hardly throws temper tantrums anymore, and when he does it is NOTHING like what we experienced when he first came home. Now he simply puts himself in "time out" and whimpers softly until he realizes that we are not going to pay attention to that behavior. His defiant personality is getting under control.

Aiden's liver numbers are still in question. We go to the doctor on Monday for another round of blood work. We will see the specialist at UK in mid-November. Aiden will also have his circumcision, tonsils and adenoids removed and tubes put in on November 12. Bad day for him, but we will be so thankful when it is over. Hopefully he will get better sleep and be able to breathe easier.

Asa is still making huge strides physically. The kid can climb stairs in seconds. He can also destroy a room in half that time. We are struggling with his constant need to be touching, banging, kicking, moving, destroying... Today he sat in my lap for about 4 minutes without trying to jump out which is the first time he has done that since we brought him home. He has also started throwing some serious tantrums when he is told "no" or if he is not the center of attention. It must be hard having 3 brothers that all need time too. We tell him all the time that it is a good thing he is so cute!

Although it is challenging to have 4 children ages 3 and under, we feel blessed. God never gives us more than we can handle, and He constantly shows us His provision and hope. Today Kenneth and I were commenting that we can't imagine life without Aiden and Asa. How boring it would be!!!

UPDATE on Aiden

It has now been almost two weeks since we learned of the high enzyme numbers for Aiden's liver. We went to get him an ultrasound on 9-3 which came back normal. The good news is that it does not look diseased and his other organs look good too. The bad news is that we still do not know what is going on. We back to our pediatrician on 9-8 for more blood work. We were hoping that the numbers had at least stabilized or started to decline. His ALT number stabilized but his AST did not. His AST number actually went up 11 points. We are now waiting to see a specialist at UK hospital, and that appointment is not until mid November. For the time being we have to go back to the pediatrician for more blood work on 9-22. If his numbers have not stabilized or gone down we are going to have to see a specialist in Cincinnati.

In other news, we had to take him to an ENT on 9-9. We learned that he will need both his tonsils and adenoids removed. He will also need tubes put in his ears. This surgery is scheduled for 11-12. Right now he has a mild ear infection in one ear and a very bad infection in the other. Poor kid.

I continue to be thankful that God brought Aiden to us and we can, Lord willing, begin to get him the medical care he needs. Thank you to all who have been praying for Aiden and our family.

What I Do Know

On Monday we took Aiden to the doctor for a follow-up. I almost cancelled the appointment because we already have another appointment scheduled for November and I am getting so tired of doctor appointments between the 5 of us. I e-mailed our doctor to just check what the appointment was for. He said that we could wait until November but then we would have to come back again anyways to finish up vaccinations. I decided to keep the appointment because going now with 3 children, as opposed to going with 4 children in a few more months, just makes sense. Am I glad that God had his hand even in that...

In June they did some blood work on Aiden. He tested positive for HEP-A and his liver function numbers came back a little higher than normal at 79. The doctor was concerned but thought this might be due to the HEP-A, which would be leaving his system. When we re-tested his blood on Monday we discovered that the HEP-A is gone, but the liver numbers were in the 300's. 70 is the high end of normal. This is not good.

We do not know what is going on with Aiden's liver. The doctor is very concerned but said that we do not need to panic just yet. We go in tomorrow to get an ultrasound of his liver, and then back to the office on Wednesday to get more blood work. The doctor thinks that because he is so young, and if we get ahead of whatever is going on, there should be no long term affects. We just don't know....

Here is what I do know...
-This is no suprise to God, even if it is a suprise to us.
-God is in total control, no matter what happens.
-This is for our good and God's glory, although we might not see it right now.
-Jesus is the great physician, and we can totally trust Him.
-God could have brought Aiden to our family to spare his life. What would have happened with no medical care, or very little medical care, in Ethiopia?
-God knows exactly what is going on with Aiden and He loves him.
-God is our provider, and He will provide for His children.
-In a way, I am praising God because it has shown Kenneth and I that our hearts hurt for Aiden the same way it would if Noah were in this situation. What a comforting reassurance that we are bonding and feel that he is truly, truly ours.

Please be in prayer for Aiden.

First Steps and Anniversary Weekend

This weekend is our 6 year wedding anniversary! I can honestly say that I am so thankful that I am married to Kenneth and there is no one else I would rather journey through life with! I cannot imagine doing this whole parenting and adoption thing with anyone else!

For our anniversary all we wanted was some rest! Our parents are having the kids over for a sleep-over this weekend so that we can rest in our own bed and not have to wake up with the kids in the morning. The boys are a huge blessing, but are so exhausting too. I cannot tell you how much I am looking forward to sleeping!!!! What a blessing that all of our boys have great relationships with both sets of grandparents and that the grandparents are willing to give us the gift of rest!

Asa took his first steps on Tuesday! The kid is already everywhere and into everything so I am very excited that he is starting to take his first steps. Maybe by the time Nathan arrives Asa will be a confident walker! It would certainly be nice to not have to carry two babies around everywhere we go.

Aiden has made some progress with his language. He is starting to put two words together more and more. We have a long way to go, but we are getting somewhere!

Noah continues to be an awesome big brother. He is so loving with Asa and so encouraging with Aiden. Although Noah and Aiden have their fair share of fights they are getting along so much better now and we are having to break up less and less bickering and shoving matches.

It feels like things are starting to calm down around our house. I am having less and less days where I feel like I should be locked in a mental facility. Every day gets a little better and a little easier (in general). I am just so thankful for God's grace and his forgiveness when I react in frustration, tiredness and stress. I pray that He would just give me the strength and patience to be the example of Christ that my children need to see in their mother.

Could this be???

Okay, so I don't want to get ahead of myself....but Asa has slept through the night this whole week! 5 nights in a row! Kenneth and I are thrilled beyond belief that this might be the start of a permanent thing for Asa. Although I am still getting up multiple times throughout the night, being in my third trimester of pregnancy, it really helps that I am not having to tend to a crying 10 month old. Praise God! I am still really tired all the time but at least I haven't felt like I would fall over at any moment. Now it feels like my tiredness is more pregnancy related rather than getting up at all hours with other children.

Things at our house are still wild, but we are settling in. Asa seems as though he feels very secure in our family and that he doesn't even remember his life before us. He has become really attached to me in particular. He gets a huge smile when I walk into the room.

Aiden is well attached to Kenneth, but his relationship with me isn't as great as I would have hoped. I know that it will come with time but it is hard. I told Kenneth the other night that it is hard to keep giving and giving and giving and sacrificing when you feel rejected in return. His reply, "Isn't that just like the gospel?" True. Christ keeps giving and giving and giving and sacrificing and so often we reject him in our disobedience and ungrateful attitude. Again, this adoption has taught me so much about the gospel and what it means to be a follower of Christ. I am thankful that God has blessed me with the opportunity to learn in such a concrete way.

Citizenship

Although Aiden & Asa officially became citizens of the best country on earth on June 6, we have now received their social security cards and citizenship cards. Wahoo! The next step in our adoption process will be to re-adopt them in the state of KY. We will have to hire an adoption lawyer and go through a process. From there, Kenneth and I are going to go through the process of legally changing the boys' names, and changing Aiden's birthday. Hopefully we will be able to start the re-adoption in a couple months when our social worker comes to do our 3 month visit.

The boys are also adjusting pretty well at home. At the moment all 3 are crying, which is just fantastic to listen to (ugh). However, for the most part, it is getting better each day. Asa is coming along like a champ, with the exception of his eating habits and waking up in the middle of the night. Aiden is speaking more and more English. We have his first speech therapy session tomorrow afternoon. I think I will feel sooo much better once Aiden starts communicating with words rather than whinning and grunting.

Well, better go get Noah out of time out...