Randomness

Luke: (holding a deck of cards in the box) Mom, can we go outside and ride bikes?
Me: No. We have to leave for co-op in a few minutes.
Luke: I'm going to flip these cards. If they land this way we will ride bikes. (flipping the deck over) If they land this way we will go to co-op.

For the record, they landed on co-op. So proud of the wonderful decision making skills I have taught my son.

*****

Gary talking to Trey...
Gary: When you get married and have kids will you live by me?
Trey: Yeah, as long as there is a house for sale. Actually I am going to move to Alabama.
Gary: Why?
Trey: It's sunnier there.

*****

Trey and Luke have been playing "house hunting" lately. They ride their bikes down the street and pretend to look at houses to buy. I am their realtor.
Trey: Do you have any other houses we can look at? We kind of like the last one. It had a hot tub, but it was too expensive. It was over our budget.
Me: Well, I have a few more. One has a pool. Do you want a pool?
Trey: It doesn't matter if it has a pool or a hot tub just as long as it is in our budget.

At least one kid is picking up the right stuff! :)

*****

Trey skyping Grandpa:
Me: Trey tell Grandpa about co-op.
Trey: I take 2 classes. One is a body class where I learn about my body. The other one is a monkey class.
Me: It is NOT a monkey class!
Trey: yes, it is!!!

The class is actually a literature class, but for the first 2 weeks they read books with monkeys in them (Curious George and Caps For Sale), so naturally to the 5 year old mind it is a monkey class.

*****

Alex and Ana are potty training. Alex caught Ana having an accident in the living room. He grabbed her, pulled her by her hand into the bathroom, pulled her undies down and sat her on the potty. If only he would do that for himself!!!

*****

Luke: Mommy will you rub me? (not uncommon for him to ask. He likes for me to rub his back or his face sometimes)
Me: What do you want me to rub?
Luke: My feelings.
Me: Where are your feelings?
Luke: (pointing to his chin) right here.

*****

Trey has now lost 2 teeth. On the day he lost the second one we knew it was coming out. Gary begged Trey to let him pull it out in the morning even offering to pay DOUBLE what the tooth fairy pays. Trey declined.


Over dinner...
Me: Trey did you lose your tooth? I don't see it.
Trey: No. (feeling for it and realizing it isn't there his eyes get huge and begin to tear up). OH NO! I think I ate it! I thought it was part of my chicken.

I had to write a letter to the tooth-fairy letting her know what happened.

Tired boy 

1st day of school (Alex had a nasty cold that left a sore on his nose :(

1st day of co-op (Alex doesn't know how to NOT be in pictures)

The coast

My sweet Lukey!

I don't know if you can tell, but we got SOAKED!!!! Ana and Alex ran straight for the water. I let them thinking that the first wave would hit their feet, it would be cold and they would back away. Instead the wave came in farther than I anticipated. It soaked Ana up to her waist, knocked Alex over, and I ended up wet almost to my waist trying to save them both from being washed out to sea (I had help from Gary, Brian and Rachel, but I guess I was the closest). Fortunately, like a good mommy, I packed changes of clothes for all the kids. Unfortunately, like a typical mommy, I didn't think about myself. I spent the rest of the day wet, and even went to lunch with some mittens on my feet acting as socks (glad I have lots of random junk in my van :) . 

How cute are they?

Trying to get dry and warm. Enjoying some good conversation and watching Jordan enjoy some tasty sand :)

The single benefit of having your 4 year old taken out by a wave is that he will finally settle down long enough to cuddle.

This was in someone's yard on the way home from the beach. They also had a mystery machine and a bat-mobile.

That's my girl! (or my 4th boy :) She loves the football helmet, dribbles a basketball, plays cars, trains, and trucks, and has no fear.

Just your typical gas-mask-required diaper change in the Hagler home.

She shoots...she SCORES!!!!

The rocky roads we travel

There is typically not an easy road for the things in life that are worth doing. This is especially true in parenting. I wish there was a quick fix for temper tantrums, potty training, reading lessons, meal-time battles, lessons in sharing, and bedtime struggles. But, I have learned that anything that claims to be an easy solution tends to be false advertising. Take the 3-day potty training approach. You can spend 3 days following your child around and running them to the potty, but this does not necessarily mean that your child is potty trained after 3 days. Ask anyone who has tried it. There are still accidents, still night-time training to be done, and lots more mad dashes to the potty in hopes that you made it in time.

Last week my life was easy easier. Aside from a few appointments here and there our weeks passed much the same as one another. Lots of time at home. We woke when we were ready (well, when the kids were ready), did schoolwork on our time, played outside if it was nice, enjoyed some downtime, and in general didn’t have any pressing decisions to make. This week, however, was very different. Alex and Ana started “school” 2 days a week. They attend an early intervention program for a few hours each week. I am responsible for driving them there and picking them up, which means feeding, dressing, and loading all my kids by 8am!

All of this has brought about a lot of thought on my part. As we sat down to enroll the kids in the EI program and develop an IFSP we were greeted by several faces, one of whom was a representative from the public school system. She was there to ensure that Alex’s transition from the EI program to public school in a few months would be as seamless as possible. Public school. A few months. Suddenly decisions that we didn’t have to make right away were staring us in the face. These decisions are still up in the air (and up in prayer). Initially there was something appealing about sending Alex to school. They could provide an environment that I just could not. Maybe they could bridge the gap between where he is and where he should be. They could give him opportunities for peer interaction that I could not. His learning could be scaffolded, and he could glean information from the other children in his class.

But then my week got crazier. Trey started homeschool co-op through our church. He goes one day a week for 2 classes. He is currently participating in a health class and a Literature class. We are at the church from about 9:30am until 2pm. I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect yesterday as we pulled up, but I was so blessed! At co-op I was witness to parents, moms AND dads, who wanted so badly to make sure that their children and their children’s education was a primary focus in their lives. There were moms teaching classes with infants strapped to their chests, dads who were showing up for a few hours in the middle of their work day to come teach a class, parents who have committed to their families and to one another. Parents who have decided that giving their children a Christ-centered education is their primary focus outside of their own relationship with the Lord. Moms and dads who know that while curriculum is important it will have no bearing on eternity if it excludes Christ. There were moms who were encouraging each other, moms offering advice, moms and dads holding one another accountable.

It was in the middle of this blessed day that I began to wonder, “what is the most important thing I can give my kids?”. Of course, I know the answer. So the next question becomes, “how can I give my kids Jesus in the best way possible no matter the cost to me?”. If I don’t desire public school for my other kids, why would it be okay for my special kids? Am I truly looking for the best solution or the easy road? I thought this same thing earlier in the week as I did my 8am loading to get the twins to school. I started thinking that it would be so much better if I just let them ride the bus. Then I wouldn’t have to drag everyone out. My friend assured me it was just a bus ride and it would be fine. But, it wasn’t so much the thought of them riding the bus that nagged me. It was my motivation that bothered me. It would be easier for me. Maybe it would be easier for me, but wouldn’t it be better for my kids if I dropped them off and picked them up each time? I would get to walk them in and walk them out. I would get to be the last face they see before entering the classroom and the first face that greets them outside of the classroom as school ends. It would give me an opportunity to talk with their teachers face to face, and it just might help provide a sense of security for my fragile Ana and reinforce the concept of parent/child vs. teacher/student relationships for Alex. I have committed to follow the Lord wherever He will lead me. There will be a time when rest will come (might be when I die, but even if it is I’m okay with that). Until then, I desire to seek the Lord in all I do and to work diligently at the tasks he blesses me with…even if it means taking a hard, rocky road every time.

Happy Birthday, Ana!

This post is coming a few days early. On January 4th my sweet Ana will turn 4. This is a very bitter-sweet kind of day. The sweet is on this side of the globe. The bitter on the other.

As her birthday quickly approaches I cannot help but think of what was. What January 4th must have looked like 4 years ago. What was it like in that hospital as this beauty entered the world? I imagine the immediate joy followed by the heartbreaking pain. I can't help but wonder what it would feel like to spend 9 months anticipating the arrival of your first baby only to have her come into this world, not as you expected, but different. To be told that you must leave her behind. You must walk away from the child you have loved. The child who is a part of you. The child you still love despite her "imperfections". How would it feel to have your own parents tell you to move on and abandon her? To have doctor after doctor advise you to leave her for someone else to deal with? To be told that you will never be valued if people know you have a child with Down syndrome? And so, my heart breaks for the fragile 24 year old girl who had to endure this 4 years ago.

Ganna 2008

But, my heart also soars for God's plan to make her daughter mine to love.

And then my heart sinks again as I contemplate what could have been. I think about what this day would have looked like for Ganna, or "Anya" as she was affectionately called in the orphanage. What if we hadn't said yes. With about 1 week to go before we traveled to Ukraine, we got the fateful e-mail that changed our lives dramatically. I wonder, what if we said no. What if nobody showed up to call this sweet child their own. The truth is that she would be spending her birthday being shipped off to an adult mental institution. This makes me cry, not just because she is my daughter. This makes me cry because if you could have seen Ganna before she was Ana...well you would cry too. This sweet little girl was locked away: a prisoner trapped inside of herself. I can't bear the thought of what life in a mental institution would have done to her. And I cry because what she escaped by God's grace is reality for so many.

It has been nearly 8 months, and the 3 year old Ganna who blew bubbles out the sides of her mouth, banged her head on the crib, and shook rattles on her face as her only forms of stimulation is fading fast. She is being replaced by 4 year old Ana who calls me "mama," loves to be rocked and have Amazing Grace sung to her. She giggles when she talks on the phone, she loves her brothers, reaches for her daddy to be held in his loving embrace, is becoming a pro at puzzles, enjoys finding mischief with her little "twin," and is beginning to learn what love is.

Happy Birthday my sweet Ana! We can't believe we have been so lucky to be blessed by you.

"He who was seated on the throne said, "I am making all things new!"" -Revelation 21:5

Patiently waiting...

...okay, I can't contain my excitement anymore!

Thank you for the stroller Amy. Look at the joy on her face :)

I wonder what it is?

A princess mirror!!! This was her favorite. Good work, Grandma!

Making silly faces at herself

YEA!!!!

A post just to brag on my kiddos

All kids go through phases. Sadly when my kids are going through ugly phases I have a tendency to forget all of the beautiful phases. Right now Trey is impressing me well beyond his 5 1/2 years. Which is why I am typing this. I don't want to forget. On Christmas day our children did not open their gifts until about 6pm, yet we never heard a word about it. They never asked when they could open them...in fact, they never even mentioned gifts at all!!! Every mommy knows this is a major feat for a 5 and 3 year old. Once it was time for gifts Trey insisted on handing them out and celebrating with each of his siblings over their present. He saved his until everyone else was done.

If all of this wasn't impressive enough yesterday I had the 3 little kids upstairs for bath time after dinner. I called to Trey to tell him it was his turn. He begged me to wait because he was doing something. When I came downstairs I discovered a clean house! He told Gary, "mom would be really surprised if we cleaned the kitchen". So Gary helped him, but even to Gary's surprise when the kitchen was finished Trey went to work in the living room without a word. He cleaned it all by himself just because he knew how much I would love it.

And then tonight he sat up in his bedroom for well over an hour wrapping gifts for the rest of us. He took wrapping paper and tape and sorted through his toys deciding what each person would like. He gave each of us 4 gifts...gifts of love. And you should have seen the other kids squealing with excitement as they discovered the toys they had just played with hours ago.

I am so grateful that God's grace extends well beyond our parenting abilities. I pray He will continue to mold our children in ways we cannot. Thank you, LORD!

Cannot believe I am saying this...

...MY BABY IS 3!!!

We celebrated Luke's 3rd birthday last week (in an effort to spread the cake around: Luke Dec. 23rd, Jesus Dec. 25th, and Ana Jan. 4th). I can no longer say that I have any children who are chronologically 2 or under (so long free train rides at the zoo). It is hard to think that. It makes me sad, but I am watching him grow every day, and that makes me smile.

I remember back to the day he was born. As I labored, pushing a human being out of my body, I caught Gary out of the corner of my eye with a huge smile on his face. He told me after the fact that the very first thing he saw as Luke came into the world were his huge dimples. And it's true. Luke still has large dimples that are enough to make anyone smile. One of our nephews once told us, "Luke has holes in his cheeks".  He was named Luke because we were doing a study in the book of Luke when I got pregnant with him. His name means "light," and it is so fitting for this little ray of sunshine.

Here is my little 3 year old.

December 2008

December 2009

December 2010

December 2011

Ana thought we were doing "skidamarinka doo"

If you ask him his favorite part of his birthday the answer is, "ice cream". If you ask what else, he will say, "cupcakes". Forget presents! He asked Aunt Melina and Uncle Scott to send him ice cream for his birthday. Aunt Melina said she couldn't send ice cream in the mail. Luke asked, "can you send cake?"

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LUKE!!!

Christmas Card 2011

A few years back, I decided that I was done sending paper Christmas cards. Well after the holiday season I would end up with a stack of cards still on my counter: cards for people whose addresses I didn't have, cards that had been "returned to sender" because I apparently had the wrong address, and left over cards that sat while I wondered who am I forgetting?. So since that time, we have opted for the video card. We figure it is a good way to let everyone see how much our kids have grown in the last year (since we are rebel children who wander the country, never staying near family or friends for too long :). And it better expresses what we want to say than one generic message on a card (you know me...always lots to say!).  So here is your 2011 Christmas greeting...

The cost of being "in a minute" mom

Dinner to plan and prepare, breakfast dishes to wash, lunch crumbs to be swept, bills to pay, doctors appointments to schedule, a grocery list to write, reading lessons to start, math, science, geography, and Bible lessons that require more planning, more messes, more stress, and more TIME. This is a partial list of what my day entails. And in-between each of these tasks I am prodded at by my children in turn. "Mommy, watch what I can do." "Mom, want to see my football game?" "Mommy will you play trucks with me?" Sasha grabs at my legs to be picked up. Ana wants to help me cook. If I sit down for even a second, somebody wants to climb in my lap.  My response is usually a mechanical, "in a minute," with the recognition that "a minute" is never really just 60 seconds, and most times it never even passes.

But one day, I started adding up the cost of being "in a minute" mom. I have missed countless football games, music performances, and doctors visits (all occurring regularly in my living room). I have been absent for Lightening McQueen's big race, Buzz Lightyear's battle to rescue Woody, and even the weekly garbage pick-up (all which also took place in my very own living room).

I know I can't always say "yes," and I can't always drop everything for what my kids want right now. I know that it is good to teach them patience and how to play independently. But, I also know that sweeping the floor can wait while I read a book to Luke, play babies with Ana, tickle Sasha, and watch Trey beat LSU.

After all, I wouldn't want to miss any more songs created just for me like the "chocolate train ride song" below :)