Here I am, coming to you in the blogosphere from my new computer!  My trusty ol' IBM think*pad was becoming increasingly crippled, and so my sweet husband surprised me with a new computer this past week.  I am so thankful for a geeky husband who can take computers apart and put them back together -- he kept that little IBM running for a very long time!  It took a few days to get everything transferred from the old to the new, but I am back in business and faster than ever.  Woo hoo!  (The computer, that is.  Momma isn't as fast as she used to be.)

The biggest news for the past two weeks is that Luke has changed before our eyes and is adding new skills to his repertoire, AND we successfully passed our interrog--err, I mean, investigation from the Court in order to finalize Luke's adoption on April 18th.

First, to tell you about our visit from the court investigator.  Our adoption journey has been full of surprises, some good, some really difficult to cope with, and some that have left us just shaking our heads and saying, "Seriously?"  Such is the case with the court investigation.  We received a letter in February from our attorney stating that the Court had appointed a court investigator to file a report recommending for or against the finalization of Luke's adoption.  No problem, we thought.  We've got a current home study -- this should be easy peasy.  We received a packet from the court investigator with a list of ten items that needed to be completed before her visit to our home, all which were completed in our home study.  However, after she called to verify that we had received the packet, she said that the home study is irrelevant to the Court, and that we would need to complete all of the items again.  SERIOUSLY?!!!!  Don't get me wrong -- we would do ANYTHING for our precious son!  If walking on coals was on the list, we would do it!  It just seemed ridiculous and redundant (not to mention expensive) to require us to do things that we completed for the home study.

Of course, we complied and had everything completed by her visit on the 15th.  Her name was Andrea, and she was very nice.  I just found myself annoyed with the whole experience.  Tom and I had to hash through the nitty gritty of our infertility journey which subsequently brought our hearts to adoption.  Then we had to hash through our adoption journey.  Then she had to inspect our home from top to bottom.  We had to prove that our smoke detectors worked.  She had to walk through every room of the house, including the basement (which is a disaster).  She wanted to know about our animals and their temperament.  She was even in the master closet!  What really got me was when she wanted me to open all of Luke's drawers to prove that I had adequate clothing and diapers for him.  She saw both cloth and disposable, so I had to clarify that we use cloth when we are at home and disposables when we leave the house.  In the kitchen, I had to open up my freezer and show her my frozen breast milk to prove that I am feeding him.  JUST LOOK AT HIM FOR PETE'S SAKE!!!!!!!!!!  Does he look like he misses any meals?!!  Let's just say it was a looooong 3 1/2 hours for me.  My sweet Tom helped me keep things in perspective -- "It's all for our boy honey.  Just smile and jump through the hoops."  So I did.  I jumped through the hoops for my beloved son.  Let's move on and talk about him, shall we?

                                       

Luke has found his voice and likes to make noise . . . sometimes very impressively high pitched noises.

 "Whatchoo talkin' 'bout Willis?"  (From an old TV show for you young whipper snappers!)

Sitting in the Bumbo seat helping momma cook dinner.

He is very close to rolling on to his belly!

Love the hands in these three pictures -- always constant motion!

 

Fun Facts About Luke
Fact 1
Luke has changed a lot in the last two weeks!  See the rest of the facts!
Fact 2
Luke can hold his head up really well now and is enjoying the Bumbo seat more.  He's not so steady controlling his trunk, but when you're a big boy, it's going to take a little while to build those muscles up.
Fact 3
Luke gets time laying on both his belly and his back every day.  As you can see from the picture above, he is getting very close to being able to roll over from his back to his belly.
Fact 4
Luke is starting to recognize his surroundings and the games we play together.  For instance, we have a lot of fun when I change his diaper.  The instant I lay him on the changing pad, he starts kicking his chubby little legs, his eyes get big, and he starts smiling and "talking" excitedly.  He knows momma is going to start playing her tickling and kissy games. 
Fact 5
Luke's favorite direction is UP!  He likes to be held vertical and rarely let's us hold him horizontal.  He likes to be picked UP, not put down.  He is content to lay on the floor playing for very brief periods of time, and then he wants UP!
Fact 6
Luke has found his thumb!  What a relief!  He has been sleeping fitfully the last few weeks because every time his binky comes out of his mouth, he wakes up and cries.  The problem is that he is the one pulling his binky out of his mouth.  This past week, I decided that I wasn't going to give him the binky to sleep with -- he was going to have to learn to comfort himself.  My plan worked and he found his thumb!  Hooray!!!!  His thumb is always available, a binky isn't, so this is a great thing.  Tonight when I laid him down to sleep, his right thumb immediately went in his mouth, so it seems that he's got the hang of it.  I don't care how long he sucks his thumb.  I've raised enough children to know that he won't go off to college sucking his thumb.  And his teeth will be fine.  
Fact 7
LUKE IS SLEEPING THROUGH THE NIGHT!!!!!
Taking his binky away and having such a positive outcome empowered me to try to eliminate his 3:15 a.m. feeding.  Every single night at PRECISELY 3:15 a.m. Luke wakes up whimpering and thrashing in his bed.  Tom always gets up and gets his bottle ready and then brings him to me to be fed.  Tom was out on a trip Thursday night so I was on my own.  When Luke woke up during the night, I looked at the clock and it said 1:15 a.m. and I said to myself, "I don't think so."  So I rolled back over and went to sleep and so did Luke.  When he woke up at 3:15, I said "I don't think so" again.  And surprisingly, he went right back to sleep.  I suppose that means that Tom and I have been too attentive to him, lol!  We tried it again Friday night and he woke up, but went right back to sleep.  Last night, he didn't even wake up!  I put him to bed at 9:00 p.m. and he woke up at 7:00 a.m.  AWESOME!!!!!!!  I woke up feeling like a million bucks this morning!

Praying that I feel like a million bucks tomorrow morning too.  I don't anticipate the littlest of our boys keeping me up tonight, but the big boys have a couple of their friends spending the night.  It's been a loud one so far!

Teach Them While They're Young!

"...... from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.  All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness."  2 Timothy 3:15-16

"Teach me while my heart is tender;

Tell me all that I should know,

and even through the years

I will remember

No matter where I go."

- Lyrics to "Why Can't I See God" by Judy * Rogers

 

Ohio State rocks!

Liberalism oppresses the people!

Act your wage!

A trip to the National Infantry Museum at Ft Benning, Columbus GA

Christian and I (Tom) joined a group of fellow homeschoolers in visiting this beautiful tribute to the men who have served throughout our nation's history in the Army Infantry.

 A beautiful crisp day signaling that spring is just around the corner!

Here's Christian and I next to the wall at the top of the 100 yard path that leads from the entrance.  That path depicts many battles in our nation's history and it is bittersweet to think of the lives given that we can stand here in freedom.

"Iron Mike"

Visitors entering the museum are greeted with a giant bronze statue of an infantryman known affectionately as "Iron Mike" who is said to be uttering the Infantry slogan:
Follow Me!

 This is an impressive monolith that lies just inside:


For over two centuries I have kept our nation safe, purchasing freedom with my blood.  To tyrants, I am the day of reckoning, to the oppressed, the hope for the future.  Where the fighting is thick, there am I

I am the infantry! Follow Me!


All I can say is Wow!

 These scenes were taken in fairly low light conditions with a long shutter speed.  The figures don't move so it works.

Here we have a real tour guide (who happens to be the weapons curator) so slight movement is apparent.  This is a recovered Bradley Fighting Vehicle which was totalled by an IED in Iraq then carefully restored (cosmetically) for display in the museum.  It weighs somewhere around 33 tons!  (We're on the second level!)

Here's a shot looking down the hall, you can see how dimly lit it is and there's that 66,000lb Bradley sticking over the edge!

All the young men wanted a chance to shoot the rifle training simulator since it uses actual retired weapons converted for laser shooting and compressed air to induce a realistic recoil effect.  The troops get to use this system 'cause it's that good and it does save taxpayer money on ammo.

A little preactivity briefing

Christian taking aim on lane four.  He out-scored everybody else, 19 of 20.  The next closest was 11 of 20.  Gee, I wonder who taught him how to do that?

The winner smiling because he doesn't know yet that the high scorer buys a round for all.  In this case, it'll be soft drinks.

 A fine group of young guys - L - R Christopher Chafin, Jacob McAvoy, Christian, Michael Cook and
Joseph Deaton

 Two more young guys!

 The chapel is still used to this day. It can be used for Protestant, Catholic or Jewish services.

 Posing with a fine gentleman whom we thanked for his service

There was once such a thing as a nuclear grenade.  And here it is.  With a launch range of about 2.5 miles, it was not considered something people were clamoring to shoot!

Precious

Luke had a well-baby check up today.  We praise the Lord for the good report that he is thriving in every way!

Fun Facts About Luke

Fact 1

Luke is 3 months old and now weighs 14 lb. 8 oz. which is more than double his birth weight and puts him in the 65th percentile for babies his age.  The doc said that he is growing at an above average rate, and suggested that he is being fed too much.  Any volunteers out there who want to tell Luke he has to cut out a bottle or two a day?  It ain't gonna be me.  I'm gonna keep slippin' him as much as he wants.

Fact 2

Luke is now 25 1/4 inches long, putting him in the 81st percentile for his age, meaning that at three months, he's a tall little fella (kind of an oxymoron, huh?).  

Fact 3

Luke's head circumference is 16 inches, putting him in the 27th percentile.

Fact 4

I don't care how much he weighs, how tall he is, or what size his head is, I think he is PERFECT!

Thank You, Lord Jesus, for this precious little child You have brought into our lives.  Give us Your strength as his parents to always seek Your wisdom and guidance as we love, teach and guide him along the path You have ordained for him.  Send your Holy Spirit daily to lead and guide him.  Help him each moment  to grow in wisdom and stature, in grace and knowledge, in kindness, compassion and love. We have no greater desire than for him to serve you faithfully, with his whole heart devoted to You and the truth of Your Word.

Prom

The boys attended the PCLA prom this evening!  PCLA is a homeschool learning academy that offers a prom each year to homeschool students.  The boys don't attend PCLA, but they have connections, so they were invited to attend.  This prom was not like your typical public school prom -- these kids were highly supervised, had to pass a dress code, and weren't allowed to dance closely.  (Momma smiles)

So, who did they take for their dates?  Christian took his friend, Mary Kuhn, while Andrew opted to go alone.  Most upsetting to Andrew was the fact that three different girls asked HIM to be their date for prom.  If only they knew what a turnoff that was to him!  Hear ye, hear ye, any single girls visiting this blog -- guys do not like to be asked out by YOU!  They want the opportunity to be gentlemen and want you to be a lady and wait for them to do the asking!  

Mary and Christian

"The name is Bond . . . . James . . Bond."

No dancing closer than arms length.  :)

Andrew with his buddy, James Kuhn (Mary's brother).

Isn't Mary's dress stunning?!!  I absolutely love the color, and as the mother of two boys, I am very grateful to her and her mother for implementing their "engineering" skills to make Mary's dress modest!

Several people have asked me about Mary and Christian's relationship, and I answer by telling them what Christian and Mary tell everyone -- it is just a very close friendship.  They both realize that at this point in time, their relationship can't go anywhere as Christian is living at home and working on his college degree, and Mary is a junior in high school.  Our two families are very proud of Christian and Mary for their commitment to purity, and their desire to be patient and wait upon the Lord.  Tom and I will state publically that we are proud of all three of our kids and their desire to remain pure -- I mean really pure . . . . to the point that they are preserving their hearts for their spouse, and saving their first kiss for their wedding day.  Thank you Josh Harris for writing "I Kissed Dating Goodbye" and "Boy Meets Girl"!  You said exactly what Tom and I knew in our hearts to be true -- you just said it soooo much better than we could, and the kids "get it," thanks be to the Lord!

Chubby Bunny

"Can we play Chubby Bunny Mom?"  "Ummmmmmm . . . . . . . okaaaayyy . . . . . What exactly is the game of Chubby Bunny?"  "Well, each person puts a large marshmallow in their mouth and then says chubby bunny.  The person who can stuff the most marshmallows in their mouth and still say chubby bunny is the winner."

Ewwwwwwwwww . . . . . . . Andrew won with 8.  Yep. Them younguns be home edufied.

Three Months Old Today!

(Luke in the Moby Wrap.  The greatest invention.  EVER.)

Fun Facts About Luke

Fact 1

The circumference of Luke's thighs has grown to the point that I can no longer touch my thumb and middle finger together.  I love diaper change time -- it is so fun to grab those little thighs, kiss them and squeeze them!

Fact 2

Luke started belly laughing this week.  I ran my fingers lightly across his chest during diaper change time and he let out a belly laugh that caught me totally by surprise!  PRECIOUS!

Fact 3

Luke is sleeping less this week.  I pray that this is a temporary situation.  He's still sleeping in the same pattern as last week, but his sleep is fitful, like he doesn't feel good.

Fact 4

Luke is now wearing 6-9 month clothing and will be in 12 month clothing by the time the warm weather comes, which brings us to Fact 5.

Fact 5

Luke now has more clothes in his closet and drawers than he can possibly wear due to his mommy going to the 33,000 sq. ft. consignment sale at the horse park last Friday.  She really wants to go to the consignment sale at the Atlanta Motor Speedway tomorrow, but she is restraining herself.  A kid can only wear so many clothes!

Fact 6

I LOVE BEING HIS MOMMY!!!!!!!