Wet-n-Wild

That describes my morning so far.

Our mornings are well-planned. Everyone knows what they are supposed to do. Each person has goal times for each step of getting ready. Up by 6:30, out of the shower by 6:45, in the kitchen by 7:00. You get the picture. Please note that planning and executing are two totally different things.

Casper is supposed to get up at 6:00 and bring me all of my morning medicines. This allows me to be somewhat functional by 6:30 when I wake the rest of the crew. Only sometimes he forgets to set his alarm, or he hits snooze, or he turns it off. Now I don't fault him for this in any way. I do the same thing. But when I wake to my 6:30 alarm and I am in the typical significant pain I wake with I know it isn't going to be the easiest morning.

That is what happened this morning. I woke them all, fumbled through my pills. My hands do not work very well at all in the morning. It makes getting my own medicine so delightful. It started to actually kick in about the time I needed to run them down the lane.

Proof that I do go grocery shopping. These lasted about 3 days. 

It was one of those lunch packing mornings that took a little creativity. We have food, just not little things that make it easy, like bread. Somehow I couldn't get them excited about egg salad on cornbread. Eliana was putting jello in a ziplock sandwich bag about the time we needed to leave. Don't worry. I threw some cereal in a bag and handed her milk money.

So we ran out to the vehicle, which was parked out away from the house. Now remember, my medicine was still not 100% on board, I wasn't dressed (at least not in proper clothes), and it was pouring rain. I had tossed a jacket on with my just-below-the-knee nightgown and lace shoes. I was pretty sure I had icicles hanging from the hem by the time I made it to the vehicle. Then the cold air blasted from the vehicle vents on my bare, cold legs as we drove down the lane to meet the bus.

By the time I got back to the house I felt like I should call it a day and go back to bed. Instead I poured myself a cup of coffee and sat down to write because I don't actually want to forget. I want to remember the chaotic mornings. They aren't all like this, but some are and it is OK. Sometimes you have to eat egg salad and cornbread from a lunchbox for lunch.

Tomorrow they shall dine on ham and cheese sandwiches like properly cared for children. The sun will come out... tomorrow...

And Just Like That...

This boy, my baby boy, is a teenager.



He has grown quite a bit from his tiny 2 pound 11 ounce beginning.

This was taken when he was just a couple of days old. Pictures do not accurately show his tiny size

He is a sensitive, loving child. I can barely comprehend that he is 13 years old and in 8th grade. That means high school next year! I mean, how???

The day he left the NICU
He checks in with me often to see how I'm holding up when we are away from home. He knows that social situations are often exhausting for me and he is always concerned. He will come up and rub my back and say, "Are you doing OK, Mom?" I can count on it. It is so precious to me.



He likes listening to music and loves a good book. He does not love getting up in the mornings and would sleep in every morning if he could. He asked a while ago if he could paint his room black. He did, and he loves it. He has a Star Wars theme going on in there now.



He is on the Junior Varsity basketball team at school. He still finds school easy and makes good grades. He is a funny kid. He has been in the school plays this and last year. He can be shy, so it surprises me that he does really well in school plays. Maybe he is going to be like me, introverted but not shy.



Keith and I took him to breakfast yesterday on his birthday. It was convenient that there was a 2 hour delay at school, so we could have breakfast together and still get him on the bus in time.



Last night Douglas took him to the Winter Jam concert. How fun is it that it was on his birthday!?

And now we begin life with 3 teenage sons in the house. Fun times!

Six Years

Six years ago today Eliana officially became a Martin. You can see our post from that day here. I love looking back, not only because it was such a wonderful day, but because the things I experienced that day have now become familiar. I have been back to Yu Garden many times. I have eaten delicious Chinese food many times. I can eat noodle with chopsticks like a champ.

But I digress. This girl right here. That's what it is about.



She is the most loving child. Sometimes she sees another child say something unkind to their mother and she is genuinely horrified. I could never treat you like that, my precious mom! It is the sweetest.

She loves pandas. She wants to move to China and take care of panda babies when she grows up.

She never misses an opportunity to say she is thankful to have a family. Her prayers are just precious. She always thanks God for her family and that she has the best mom and dad in the whole wide world.



She calls herself my sidekick and loves to do anything with me. She will say, "Do you need your sidekick, Mom?" and jump right in to do whatever I'm doing. She curls up beside me on the bed every chance she gets. She likes to ask, "Is it snuggle time?" And it normally is when she asks.

We are so thankful that little Wu Xing Yao became Eliana Peace Martin six years ago!