Lots

So much going on here, and I'm hoping to get a post up tonight or tomorrow. G-Force moved in on Saturday and started daycare on Monday.  The teachers love him as he is so happy and easygoing.  I felt bad that he had to be in daycare, but I trust the ladies there, and right now, while John is in school, I have to work.  The twins have been so good with the little guy, and Thumbelina is such a little mother to him.  She got him laughing very hard yesterday when she would sniff his hand and exclaim, "Pee-UUUUU!!!" Cherub has been trying to teach him the signs for 'more,' 'eat,' and 'please,' since G-Force doesn't use words yet.  So cute.

Thumbelina no longer calls me 'mommy.' I'm "Mom" now.  "Um, hey Mom? Um, I need my white flip flops." "Um, hey Mom? Look what I drew! It's a dinosaur foot." "Did you HEAR dat, Mom?! It's a airpwane!"

Cherub and I spent the morning together yesterday since he had to stay home from school.  It was really nice to have him with me and get to take him to my office when I picked up some work.  People who had not seen him for a long time were amazed at the changes in him.  We're really proud of the twins and what amazing and fun little people they have become...especially that they are nearly potty trained!

I'm back!

Hidden Fern had a little technical difficulty when the domain name expired and needed to get renewed. yada yada yada We're back! I have lots to post about the last few days. :)

We're expecting

a fifteen month old boy!

The opportunity to possibly foster to adopt a little boy came to us when the twins’ caseworker told us about him one day when we were at a court hearing.  His foster care case is possibly coming to an end, and his foster family (wonderful people) have decided that due to their age and the fact that they have three young adopted children who need a lot of attention, they cannot adopt G.  John and I met G and his foster siblings and parents at a park midway between our homes.  At once I was struck by their love for their children and the great care they take of G.  John and G’s foster father are about the same height and both have good senses of humor.  The foster parents’ children (9, 8 and 4) were very nice and adored G as much as he adored them.  This is very bittersweet for his foster family, especially “R” his foster mother, who had tears in her eyes when they arrived at the park, and when we were leaving.  She did, however, feel really good about where G is going, and saw that G liked us and was very comfortable. John was playing with and holding G about 2/3 of the time, and they seemed like old friends. 

The funny part:  His birth name begins with “J” but his birth mom wants him to be called by his third name which begins with “G” but sounds like “J.”  G’s caseworkers name also starts with “J” and is the same name as the twins’ caseworker! So, 2 more J names in the mix.  This is what I get for hating name patterns! 

To prepare for our new arrival, we are required to have an amended foster license.  Currently, we are licensed for two children.  The home office has been moved to the family room, which is now the media/family room. John and his dad painted G’s room and John’s mom and sister brought dinner and bought material we picked out to make curtains!  

For the last two weeks, we’ve talked to the twins about Baby G coming to visit and then coming to stay with us.  Every night, they pray, “God bwess Baby G.” 

He is not legally free for adoption yet, but we will be considered his permanent home when he is, and we will find out how this will go at the end of October at a hearing.  As this is foster care, anything can and does happen. Your prayers are appreciated not only for us and G –Force, but for his foster parents and siblings who have raised him since he was 4 days old.  R & R, the foster parents, will have broken hearts for a good while. 

We have received so much help and support from our families, especially our parents and John’s sister Miriam who have watched the kids for us, brought dinner, painted, made curtains, and countless other things.  In our case, and I think in most families, it does take a (family) village.

Announcement coming...

Stay tuned for Friday night or Saturday morning. Prayers please. :) Thanks in advance!

7 Quick Takes

1.)  John finished his first week of his last quarter of classes! After this, his third year of PT school is 9 months of internships.  We're entering the home stretch!

2.) I got my plane ticket to DC to visit my sister and her family one last time before they move to Brazil for 3 years.  Looking forward to seeing them, but already dreading the goodbye.  Also, it's been 2.5 years since I was on a plane.

3.)  The twins are doing well and blossoming.  They've had some funny conversations between the two of them, and John and I stifle laughs listening to them.  On June 21, it was the one year anniversary since they were placed with us.

4.)  We're reorganizing the pantry. Yep, we're wild ones. But it makes such a difference to have everything in its place and be able to use what we have.  These have been a great help. We bought a set of 5 at Target. Perhaps I'll post before and after photos. 

5.)  On his week off, John cleaned out the garage and set up a workout area for us.  He's doing P90X and I'm in there for Zumba.  We have our weights, yoga mats and mini bar.  What I do need to get are some simple curtains or blinds for the window and door.  I'd be a little embarrassed if our new neighbors saw me gettin' my Zumba on.

6.) Still need to post a Father's Day note.  There are wonderful men in my life who are great fathers and I'm sorry that I haven't posted about them yet!

7.)  Need your prayers for a special intention.  As things progress, I will post about it.  In the meantime, John and I are on Day 3 of the 54 Day Novena.  Not only is praying the Rosary together something we haven't done for a long time, it is giving us much needed quiet time and reflection as our lives get more hectic.  For those who aren't familiar with this novena, for the first 27 days, you pray special prayers along with a Rosary for your intention.  The next 27 days are in thanksgiving.  Thank you for praying for us!

Cranberry Coffee Cake

Last night, after the kids were in bed, I decided to bake something using what we had in the freezer/pantry. I've had 2 bags of cranberries in the freezer since November.  A couple of weeks ago I used some in muffins.  Coffee cake sounded good, so I googled 'cranberry coffee cake' and found a gem from Joy the Baker.

Shortly before starting, I realized that I had no brown sugar. Joy the Baker to the rescue again.  Homemade brown sugar is fluffy and delicious! I happened to have a bottle of molasses in the pantry for ginger biscotti that I never made.

The cake turned out well, and the strudel top is delicious.  If you have extra cranberries around Thanksgiving, or have a bag in the freezer like I did, give this recipe a try.

The F Files #1

This is a new blog category: The F(oster) Files.  The first entry is a funny tale about a well-meaning parishioner.  As many of you know, Cherub, (a boy) has beautiful curly, long hair that is up in a ponytail every day.  Add on his long eyelashes, big brown eyes and a beautiful face, he looks like a girl.  However, he is always dressed as a boy, in blues, oranges, greens, Toy Story stuff, dump truck stuff, and a suit and tie for Easter Mass.  No matter how masculine we dress him, people still think he is a girl.  I guess people must reason away the masculine clothes??

Anyway, I found out from our pastor that someone (his brother) told him about a couple who dresses their little girl like a boy.  Father started laughing because he knew  that we were ‘the couple.”  His brother earnestly said, “No, you don’t get it. They dress her in a suit and tie!”  Father and I were laughing so hard about it. 

What makes me wonder is how many other people who don’t know us think that?  I don’t really care, because there is nothing we can do about his hair other than keep it clean and out of his face.  This well meaning young dad was kindly concerned about Cherub and our judgment, but for Pete’s sake, we’re at Mass and going up to Communion, and still the suit and tie didn’t make one think, “Maybe it’s a boy with long hair.”  The conclusion was made that we were dressing a girl as a boy.  It is funny, a little frustrating at times, but not as frustrating as the situation with the kids’ case.  Your prayers are most welcome.

The next time I see the nice young dad, I will joke with him about it and introduce Cherub as “Our little tranny.” ;)