A New Dog

Well, we have a new dog today. As soon as I get my new computer (tomorrow) I'll post pictures.
She's cute...but certainly not beautiful. She has a very long nose! Her body looks like a small Lab, but she has the head of...maybe a Dachsund? She has 4 white feet and white on her chest. They told us that she is Lab/Border Collie. Personally, I would MUCH rather have had a Mastiff, but this is NOT my dog. For the record, I was OPPOSED to another dog, but little miss Mackie has her daddy so tightly wrapped around her little finger that she can manipulate him into ANYTHING if she wants it badly enough!
"Sissy" is here on a 3 day trial basis, so we'll see how it goes. The Boxer, (Captain Morgan) fell in love with her and they became instant friends.

"A" did very well today. Tomorrow is a visitation day, so we'll see how that all goes. (sigh)

That's all for tonight. I have a big day tomorrow and need to get some sleep.

March 23rd, 2009

I sure love this child. He still has his moments, but all in all, he's just a neat little boy who has suffered greatly and needlessly at the hands of adults who should have never had children.
We went shopping on Saturday and Tosh bought him some Carharts. He told him that when you have your Carharts on, you aren't allowed to cry! He's SO cute in them and he just loves to wear them. He told me that he wanted to wear the pants that he couldn't cry in! ;) When he fell and started to cry, I reminded him that he had his Carharts on and it was an immediate fix!
He adores "his" horse and wants some boots and a hat...and he reminds me every day.

I think that our biggest problem has actually been in getting our own daughters to embrace him. They were all on board and excited about having him until he got here and they found out how difficult it was. McKenna is quite jealous and has made it no secret. We are trying to give her time to adjust and make sure that we pay attention to her as well, but it's a big change for her and it wont come easily. Savannah has taken on a more responsible role and she is actually (usually) very good with him. One positive thing that I've noticed is that the girls aren't fighting NEAR as much with each other now! This is good. I think that they really just need time to get used to things. I remember how hard it was for me at 10 when my sister came to stay with us for the Summer. I loved her, but I was very jealous and hurt that my parents paid so much attention to her, when I got so little. I want to make sure that my kids don't get hurt, but I also want them to learn to share...and appreciate what they have. This isn't going to be easy.

My computer is toast. It's funny, because I have been complaining so much about it not charging that my husband finally gave me the "go ahead" to buy a new laptop. I ordered it last night.
Today, his dumb Boxer dog stomped on my computer and ruined the screen. I'll have to use an external monitor to get my stuff off of it, but I'm SO thankful that my new one will be here Wednesday! It's a Compaq Presario. I hope its a good one. It had rave reviews.

Hmmm..let's see. McKenna talked her dad into a new dog. We're going to look at a "nice little dog" tomorrow, but I'm not thrilled. We do NOT NEED five dogs!
Well, that's it for now. I wish I could just report that we will get to keep "A", but I know better than to get my hopes up.

Lis

My Little Cowboy!

The days just continue to get better. "A" is finding his way and starting to understand how things work around here. He earned all of his stickers today and an extra one because he was SO good! He loves his new school and gets along quite well. He's a very smart little guy.:)
Today, when I went to meet his bus, I found two of my horses in my neighbor's pasture. They had apparently decided to go for a walk...so the neighbor caught them for me. "A" has been wanting to ride "his horse", so as I walked the horse home, I put A on his back. It was his first horse ride ever and he LOVED it! He told me, "Now I'm a REAL cowboy and I need some boots and a hat."!!! What a cutie.
I'm trying really hard not to get too attached...but this is never going to be easy. I'm beginning to discover that many of his behaviors are just "boy things" and I'm not used to that.
We've had him one week today...and I adore him. I'm already praying that we never have to give him back.
I met his entire family yesterday when he went for a visit. I don't think I was really supposed to, but we all got there at the same time and it just kind of happened. It was mildly uncomfortable, but I held my own and I was friendly and respectful in order to put them all at ease and not make things any harder on our little man. They have a real history of negative manipulation with him and the other kids in care, so I want them to feel as good about me as possible in order to protect him. All in all, it's going pretty well.

In other news, McKenna talked her daddy into a new dog, so we are looking for the right dog to join our farm. (JUST what we need!) It's a good thing we HAVE a farm!
Did I tell you that Roxie came up lame and I had to get a new drill horse? Well, if I didn't...now you know. The new horse's name is Dan. He's white...and "A" has claimed him. I don't mind. Right now, he's on lease for the Summer and we'll see how it goes. He's not in great shape yet...hadn't been ridden in a year, so drill is really hard on him. Drill night is exhausting for me because I feel like I'm "beating a dead horse"!!! I REALLY miss Roxie.:( She will get better, but has to have several months off to heal.

I got my Utah Instructor's license and will now start teaching the Utah CHL class. I'm excited because it means a significant amount of money coming in! We need it right now. (sigh)

Thanks for the prayers...they're working!

Uggghhhh....

It was another long, tough day. Several tantrums, several time-outs, only one sticker...and thank God he was tired and went to bed early!!! I think my daughters are the most stressed out over it.

A Good Day.

Our little man woke up today with a new attitude...for now!
He got up and went to work with Dad, which seems to have been a wonderful thing.
He really NEEDS a good man's influence. He came home greasy and happy and announced that he was going to get ALL of his stickers today! (He has a sticker chart.)
He giggled and played all day, and he helped to make cookies, (and eat them!) and was super happy when he got EXTRA stickers tonight.
I think that there are going to be good days...and bad days. I'm glad that today was a good one. After yesterday, I think we all really needed it. McKenna ran away to a friend's house this afternoon...Lol! Poor kid.
It's impossible to look at this little boy and not just love him. How can people hurt a child like him so badly? How/why does this happen? I see his little face and hear his infectious, happy giggles and I cannot help but wrap my arms around him in a genuine, loving hug.
I think God knows a sucker when he sees one!

ZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz........

Oh. My. God.
WHAT was I thinking??? I am SO tired today.
This little boy has more energy than 10 girls. He also has a long way to go in learning
to mind...learning NOT to have tantrums in the store, and learning not to use the word "hate" in every other sentence. It was a LONNNNNG day!
It's okay, and I'm really, truly not regretting doing this....but I think the first couple of weeks are going to be pretty rough. It going to take some time for all of us to get used to things.
One big issue is that he doesn't deal with pain well AT ALL. Even the slightest "ouchie" and he goes into a MAJOR screaming fit. It was rather embarrassing at the park today!
He's still pretty darned cute though and it's impossible to be mad at him:)
He got up before all of us and used the phone to call his grandmother, so tonight we are removing the phones. His caseworker has said that there will be no more calls this week. It's going to be hard for him. This is so challenging..and heartbreaking.
I have to share what he JUST did! He is lying on the couch so he can fall asleep and he wanted Savannah to sit with him. She snuggled all down and he let out a big 'ol fart!!! She yelled and he started giggling so hard that he almost fell off the couch! What IS it with boys and farts????

Good "Mom news" tonight! She had her ultrasound this morning and the doctor was WRONG.
There was NO aortic aneurysm. Thank you God. I'm so relieved.

Amazing Day!!!

Wow! It was a crazy and absolutely emotional, amazing day.
At 3:30 today, I drove to town and met my new son! Because we have to maintain
his anonymity at this time, I will Simply refer to him as "A".
He is an incredibly cute, smart little boy. We already adore him, but we do see that
he's going to keep us very busy! He was pretty confused and a little scared today, but settled
in fairly well considering. He has been living with his grandmother for the past year, but
I believe this placement was mandated by DHS. His paperwork stated that there is a plan
for reunification with his birth mother, with adoption as a secondary option.
His caseworker is super sweet. She followed us home today and brought all of his things to help
him get settled in. I really like her. She is very "genuine", which is refreshing.
She did give me the impression that she doesn't expect his birth mother to shape up. I guess that Grandma is okay, and A wanted to call her tonight, so we did. She thanked me over and over. It was a little tough when A first got here and he told me that his grandma had told him that he wasn't allowed to call me "Mom". That hurt a little...but I can understand it.
He did call me Mom towards the end of the night, but I could tell that he was really worried about it. I'll have to talk with the caseworker and see what she thinks.
He was pretty nervous at bedtime, so we allowed him to come out and lie on the couch...and he promptly fell asleep. He was SOOOO cute!
We're all very excited...and exhausted!

I spoke with my step-dad today and he doesn't seem to be worried about my mom. I think I'll reserve my non-worrying until I hear what the doctors say.

March 11th, 2009

Quite an eneventful day, for the most part.
I did clean out my car...which I must say, I think I deserve a reward and my children deserve a beating for! Gack...what a mess!
I wonder if ALL kids spill and dump stuff in their mother's cars and then hide it? The only way I discover it is when my car starts smelling like something died in it. WHY am I wanting another child again???
My new horse is settling in quite nicely. He's a real cutie! Oh...maybe I haven't mentioned him yet. Well, you see, Roxie came up lame during drill practice a few times, so I took her in for x-rays and an ultrasound. She has a bone spur in her hock that causes her flexor tendon to become inflamed. We can treat it easily, but she has to have a few months off to heal. Since I ride on a drill team and have a committment to my team, I HAD to have a horse that I can ride!
I found a great home for Big Jay, the rescue that I have been rehabbing, and made room for a new horse. Enter Dan. He's white, bombproof, a finished roping and drill horse and a major love-bug! He is just a little lazy, but I think he'll get better with regular riding.

We are bringing our new little foster son home tomorrow! I'm super excited...and a bit nervous too. Tosh and I went out and bought all kinds of trucks and army men and boy toys. We haven't ever had a boy, so this will be interesting!

No news about my mom yet. I'll post and let you all know as soon as I have any information.
We were very lucky to have found this thing early so we can get it taken care of. I'm just so grateful.

March 10th, 2009

Well, things have been a whirlwind! We finally came to the realization that we were not going to be allowed to have Robbie, no matter what we do. We are having to come to terms with that. The DHS workers have blackballed us and there is no way that they will allow us to have him.
Thanks God that's in Washington!

Meanwhile, Tosh and I had decided that we weren't going to work with OSLC anymore, because we ultimately want to adopt a child, and OSLC is more about rehabbing & returning. We had decided to change to DHS where we would have to take more classes, but we would have a good chance at finding the perfect kid(s) for us. THEN...last week they called me about Alex. He's
five years old and has been through hellish abuse and neglect. After a short discussion, we decided that we really want him! There is a slight chance that we can adopt him too, but we'll take it one thing at a time! I pick Alex up on Thursday. I'm excited, but nervous.

In other news, my mother let me know that she has been diagnosed with an aortic aneurysm. She is going to have it looked at this week. I'm scared. Those are nasty.:(

Lisanne