Staying home with the 4 kids, my days all start to blend together between home school and housework. My mind is a never ending reel of little children's voices all day... many times sweet, but lets be honest, most of the time it's whining and fighting among the siblings. This is just the stage of life we are at right now with a 6, 5 and two 4 year olds in a tiny house and together 24/7. That's ok, This is the life I have chosen and I really couldn't envision it any other way. I am blessed beyond measure! As someone once told me, "The days are long, but the years are short." I'm realizing that more and more lately, especially thanks to Facebook's "On this Day" posts. Thanks FB, you make me have baby fever and cry and laugh on a daily basis.
I am also realizing more and more, that while I love being with my babies and pouring into them each day, I also need time for myself. I can easily forget that in order to pour out, I need to be filled up. For me, that means I need time in the Word and prayer, time with friends for fun, time with those who encourage and challenge me, time to be alone, time to do things I enjoy like write and read while I sip hot chai at my favorite coffee shop. I'm thankful that my husband recognizes that as well, and sends me for some alone time when I feel life getting a bit overwhelming. I'm learning to recognize when I can feel myself about to go crazy and I try to plan accordingly to get out...hence why I am writing this blog post. I must say, man it feels good to sit here and tap thoughts out on a keyboard, without a little one tugging at my shirt. That is where I am after 6 months, trying to figure out balance for myself as wife, mom and just Angie. But, you didn't come here to read about me, let's get to Mav!
He is doing phenomenal! Y'all, I really can't believe how far he has come in 6 months. He has blossomed so very much. His language, his ability to listen and understand, his adjustment to our family and routine, his self control. He's a different kid y'all, with all of the wonderful characteristics of Maverick, like his totally silly personality, his determination that he is capable to conquer anything in front of him, his super snuggle skills, his compassion when someone else is crying, I could go on and on. He is a darling and a stinker all at once. I'm not even kidding either, he gets cuter by the day! Some days are still hard and I don't expect everything to be perfect after 6 months, but everything feels more normal now. It feels like he has always been here.
He has his upcoming cleft palate surgery in about a month. It turns out that he did have palate surgery in China when he was about a year, but the back part of it re-opened and that is why his palate still did not look quite right. We met with a cleft specialist team and they are confident in moving forward with the surgery. As his mama, I am a nervous wreck. We will spend one night in the ICU and 2 additional nights in the hospital. His arms will have to be restrained, as to not do any damage after the surgery. It will be followed by several weeks of a soft diet. I would be nervous with any of my children having to go through this, but with a child who has experienced trauma before, I am even more so. I am however thankful that this time around, he has a Mama and Daddy to comfort him after surgery. He'll start speech therapy in the fall. We would greatly appreciate your prayers for him (and me) as surgery approaches.
We recently celebrated his 4th birthday and he was in heaven. He got to have 2 parties, 1 at home (a "Gwinosaur" one, as he says) and 1 in Texas (An Airplane one) with family there. He sang himself Happy Birthday everyday for 3 weeks. I think he truly felt special and very excited. He remembers the birthday that we sent him in China, fondly. He LOVED opening gifts and would ask "That's for me?" and when we would say "yes" he would respond with a "YAY!" It was such a joy to celebrate his first birthday as a family. I loved doting on him and knowing that though we missed his first 3 birthdays, God willing, we have so many more to look forward to. A super special part of his birthday was receiving a video and gift in the mail from his foster brother, Joshua. He was so thrilled to open that gift. Of course he wanted to get on an airplane and fly to see Joshua right away. He doesn't quite understand why that is not a possibility in the moment. We are so very grateful to have a connection with such an awesome family, who adopted Joshua. We are making the effort to keep the boys connected as much as possible and hope to one day get them together in person again, despite the long distance between us. Those boys share a bond that he will never share with anyone else.
While his birthday week was a joyous one, it was also a somber one for Evan and I. We often thought of his birth family and what they must be feeling. What they felt the day he entered the world and they stared into those big dark eyes, how they felt when they discovered that he had cleft palate and realized that they likely could not care for him, how they felt leaving him soon after, hoping that he would get the care they couldn't provide, through the orphanage. Can you even imagine? My heart broke all over again for his mother. I know she must think of him often, but especially this time of year. I pray for peace for her. As Evan and I layed in bed and prayed over Maverick on his birthday night before we drifted off to sleep, He prayed words that pierced my heart so deeply. Words, that honestly, I had never even thought about until then. We have always prayed for peace for his birth mom, that somehow she would know he was ok and if she had any guilt, that she would experience forgiveness. But, my mighty man prayed that God would send someone to share the gospel with her, wherever she is. That she would accept Christ as her Lord and Savior, as would Maverick and that one day, Maverick and her would be reunited in Heaven. I am crying all over again just thinking about it. I pray with all my heart that one day that reunification can happen. All things made whole and new through Jesus! We also think about his foster mom, who poured so much love into him when we couldn't. We plan on trying to send her an update on him soon. I'm thankful that we are able to do that through our agency.
Overall, things are really good. Life is moving along and I am so thankful that we took that leap of faith and brought Maverick into our family. Honestly, I do not see us returning to China any time soon, as that trip was so hard, so so hard! It's going to take me a while to recover from that one. But, I find myself staring at pictures and watching videos of children waiting for families. I stayed up last night for a while searching for an update on one of the little ones that had tugged at my heart so hard, but had needs too great for our family to handle financially at the time. My heart is forever changed because of what I know and what I have seen. Because I have seen a little boy go from orphan to son. The difference that love, care, good nutrition and family makes is substantial. Those who have walked alongside us, can attest to this as well. God won't let me forget that and I don't ever want to. I can't wait to see how he continues to work in our family for his glory.
For now, I am so excited about supporting my friends, The Lomans, who are hosting a precious 5 year old girl with Down's Syndrome from China, this summer. Fu Yi will be living with them for one month and will be receiving some medical care while she is here. The Lomans are working hard to advocate for her and find her forever family. They are also doing fundraising in order to gift her family with a grant towards her adoption. I would love for you to follow her journey and pray about if YOU are her family or maybe someone you know is her family. Advocating for orphans is a crucial part of orphan care. Your support could help turn this precious girl from orphan to daughter. Hop on over to the Lomans FB page and see how you can get involved in Fu Yi's story.
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