Friday, July 18, 2008

I don't recommend moving without 'patience!'

And it became clear that I lost mine somewhere along the way! Gone, Nada, Zip, zero!!! It was no help when ALL my kids were having behaviors that were not pretty...disobediance, defiance, not listening, argumentative!! I know that the changes we are going through is bringing all this on, but it's been a lot to deal with. YOU TRY UPACKING A BOX WHEN THE BABY IS WHINING FOR MOMMY'S ARMS TO HOLD HIM, ANOTHER IS SPILLING WHATEVER LIQUID IS AT THEIR FINGERTIPS, SOMEONE NEEDS A SNACK, THE DOGS ARE BARKING AT OUR NEIGHBORS COWS, AND SOMEONE IS ASKING YOU TO HELP THEM WITH WHAT 'THEY' ARE DOING!!
Well, we survived, things are settling down here, SLOWLY. Our other house is clean and listed for sale. We could use prayers for it to sell fast! I have resolved that the unpacking will be VERY slow. That's okay though, I am in my dream house, and we are not going anywhere soon!
For those who have a cognative disabled child, this has been another new learning experience for me with my oldest daughter. This change has sent her into regression with her language, coping skills, and behaviors. And, with the changes in the house itself, it's like reteaching a blind person where all their new rooms are, walls and furniture placement. After she has tripped, fallen and ran into existing walls and furniture, I think she is adjusting to the change in environment.
Josiah has been way over-the-top needing his mommy. Let's just say, my back is killing me!! He is pretty heavy after just a few minutes of carrying around. He is slowing adjusting to his new environment too, and is loving his new house.
Something that I have not had the ability to post about, it the realization that my baby has Cerebral Palsy. It has been starring me in the face for so long, but all the "stuff" around me has been a distraction. It has been almost like I wasn't ready to see it yet. There was the hope that he was just "behind" because of his malnutrition, but this can't be the case anymore. He displays too many symptoms. I could not love Josiah any more than I do now. He has been such a sweet addition to our family. I am so overjoyed to be his momma and to be able to raise him, love him and help his to reach his full potential. My heart aches for all those children in Africa with CP that are left in the gutters, or sitting in wheelchairs with no hope. It truly has changed my heart for cp kids. Josiah is not displaying cognative disabilities, it's just his body won't cooperate. He has clonis in his feet, hypertonia in his legs and arms, hypotonia in his trunk muscles. He is not able to sit on his own without a lot of support, he can move around now with his "creeping" so this has helped him be more content on getting to what and where he wants. He still cannot grasp with his hand very well, so this limits his feeding skills to crackers. He is still on baby foods and formula, but is learning to drink from a cup. I call him my "toting" baby. Thank goodness for strollers and backbacks. If he's not in the mood to be on his belly for "creeping",he's either on my hip, in the stroller, or in the backback.
Josiah has another appointment with Gillette at the CP clinic. It will be nice to get more support. His therapy has gone amazingly well. Margaret, his therapist, comes here once a week, packing a ton of supplies. He loves working with her, and works hard for a solid hour, on top of what we do with him.
Having Josiah in our home has truly changed how we all perceive others limits. It has been a great learning experience for my kids, who adore their brother. I can honestly say that I would adopt another CP kid anyday! He has the most determined personality, a joy to be with and can be soooo funny! I thank God for such an amazing blessing on my life. Josiah just melts me when he looks at me with those big brown eyes!
It's been an emotional rollercoaster this past month. Just when I think I can't be stretched anymore, God stretches!!!!!!
For those of you that feel inclined, I could use the prayers!
On this final note, I love my new home and all the potential it brings for raising my kids on the farm. We are just enjoying all the learning that nature is providing.

Thursday, July 17, 2008

New pics...

Just a few of our new home. It's still a BIG mess, but we are enjoying our beautiful home and land!



Front of our home...



Our views



Just some of our flowers







Our long driveway

Friday, July 11, 2008

We have moved!!!!!

This will be short...but, yes, we have officially moved to our dream house. Scott is still working on the other house to get it listed for sale by tomorrow, but we are "mostly" moved in here. It has not been fun with all the packing, moving, unpacking, tempers flying everywhere, everyone,(all 8 of us) whiny, crabby, off schedule, etc. You get the picture. BUT...I love my new house! It is like living in a dream, our views are amazing! You can see for miles...pluse we are straight up a steep hill, so we are pretty secluded. We did manage to clean our the pool so the kids started swimming in that yesterday. Our pasture needs a really good cutting so we can explore our woods. We will be putting up our barn and fencing soon too!
Once we are a little more settled in, I can report more. Oh, camera broke, so no pics for awhile.