- STARTING WEEK 26 (again) -

ahniér in 6th month

[ending week 25 - beginning week 26...again]

[note: don't ask me how i got a week ahead of myself...guess i'm just excited, ya think!]

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ahniér isn't so teeny tiny anymore as she's weighing just under 2# & measuring about 14" from head to foot & she's now the size of an english hothouse cucumber from head to heel! [pictured below] - she's still collecting & piling on her baby fat beneath her still-loose skin, growing her brain & generally getting bigger & better - the network of nerves in ahniér's ears are better developed & more sensitive than before - she's now able to hear voices those chatting close by

she's inhaling & exhaling small amounts of amniotic fluid, which's essential for the development of her lungs - these so-called breathing movements are also good practice for when she's born & takes that first gulp of air - ahniér's little eyelids have finally separated [they were fused closed previously] & they're probably having their first moments of sight as you read this - in addition to seeing the inside of mama's belly, she's recently acquired the ability to say 'yes' & 'no' in rudimentary sign language as she can now move her head back & forth - this' also the time where the hair on her head's starting to grow - also, her toenails have grown in & most importantly, her brain tissue & neurons are all developing at a rapid pace, increasing her brain activity & will continue to function at accelerated levels for the first seven to eight years of childhood

- STILL QUARANTINED -

here's what's gone on yesterday & today...

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yesterday morning it was up & at 'em at 6am (& i hadn't even gotten to bed until 3 & in those 3 short...VERY SHORT hours of sleep, i was awaken 3 times by sick children) - we got up, got everyone dressed & ready to head to breakfast as the house inspectors were arriving at our house before 8 - upon getting up, i noticed chest pain - it's not good when you feel that anyway, but to be a heart patient myself, it sort of alarmed me BIG TIME - i told spike & brit about it, but no one else (yes, my parents now know & reamed me good for not telling them in the beginning!) - i'll call the dr. on monday, but i think they'll tell me stress (hmmm, how could that be? - we're packing up night/day as we're all 6 moving into a small rental home in just 2 weeks, putting everything else we own into storage, bringing home a brand new baby in less than 3 months making that 7 people in a small rental home, moving again just 4 months later, we'll be packing up from the rental house to move to the 'new' house, we'll be moving things from storage to the 'new' house & then right into the holidays we go! - stress...what are they talking about?!?!)

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anyhow, we left at 8 & couldn't go home until 11, so while we were out, we went for a long breakfast at crackerbarrel (yum), then it was off to wash the van, sweep it out, air up the tires (are ya happy dad???) & then it was time we could return home - i dropped off all 4 of the girls as i was meeting up with 'mama' as she had a dr. appointment & i've been going to them all

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we went & everything's looking fabulous - she's now starting week 27 (only 13 more to go!) & she's only gained 11# - can you believe it? - the dr. said she's the picture of health (baby too!) & whatever she's doing, keep doing it! - the dr. said that ahniér's doing great, getting bigger & kicking up a storm

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i then left the appointment & headed to dad/mom's to drop off some things that were brit's, that she was giving to madisyn - i visited (dad was working) for a few minutes before i had to run as i was heading to the hospital to visit shnaider, a little boy from haiti that hands that heal brought over on a medical mission for surgery - i visited with him & his host mom for about 1½ hours, then i went to another floor in the same hospital to visit my uncle noah as he had surgery yesterday too

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after that i headed for home, grabbed dinner for the family & after we all ate & got things cleaned up i sat in the chair holding the girls (BIG MISTAKE) & passed out! (not 'pass out', but went sound asleep) - i woke to find no one in the living room with me, but instead all the bear cubs were all asleep & it was 10:30 (wow, i was exhausted) - i told spike & brit good night & headed to bed - we got up this morning & here's our status at of now:

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spike: hurting really bad with shingles... REALLY bad

lori: was getting better from strep throat & fever & still on meds, but throat's still hurting & now chest pains - oh & let's not forget PMS!

brit: trying to get over pink eye

kiara: trying to get over pink eye & getting better from strep throat, but found today that she's a HUGE infected place on one of her teeth & hurts her really bad - the dentist had her to stop by & said it's her 6 year molar trying to come in & with all the infection she's been dealing with in her body, it's infected

ruby: great (PTL!)

karleigh: still battling headaches & fever off/on

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that's what i know right now!! - tomorrow, we'll be staying home from church so as to not infect those that sit around us, attend our church, pass us in the hallways, touch our money, see us in the parking lot...you get the idea

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here's praying we're all germ free soon!!!

- MORE BABY INFO -

week 26: eyes wide (almost) open

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look who's looking around...ahniér's eyes, which have been closed for the past few months [so that the retina, the part of the eye that allows images to come into focus, could develop], are now beginning to open - what this means is that ahniér's able to see what's going on now [unfortunately the view in the uterus isn't all that exciting], but do try this at home for kicks [baby's that is]: shine a flashlight at mama's stomach - your baby might kick in response [as in: "get that light out of my eyes!"] - look what else is going on this week: ahniér's brain-wave activity's kicking in, which means your little one can not only hear noises, but can now also respond to them - not in so many words, of course, but with an increase in pulse rate or activity - talking about activity, at your baby's current height & weight [about 9" tall & 2#] & at the rate she's growing, ahniér will soon be feeling a little cramped in your uterus - not to worry, there's still plenty of room for her to grow - it just means ahniér [our little gymnast] will have less room for those somersaults, cartwheels & other olympic feats

- PINK EYE, SHINGLES, STREP & MORE -

yep, that's what's going around our place... all under one roof [who wants to come for a visit?]

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spike: he broke out with a bad case of shingles on sunday & they're really hurting him now - not only does he have pain associated with them, but it's completely wearing him out

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lori & kiara: kiara 'shared' her strep throat with me [thanks sis!] & not only did we both have screaming sore throats & fevers as well, but one of us also had diarrhea [& it wasn't me!]

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brittan: she started complaining of her eye hurting yesterday [monday], stayed home today [tuesday], missed a final exam, went to the doctor & found out she's in the early stages of pink eye

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karleigh: karleigh only has fever blisters in her mouth & only complains when someone else's mentioning their 'hurts', then she talks about hers [gotta keep up with the jones'!]

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ruby: praise the lord, she's feeling great!

- REAL HOPE FOR HAITI -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SP3QRlY0xJE

- WHAT LETTER DOES YOUR NAME START WITH? -

everything must start with the first letter of your name!

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what's your name - lori
4 letter word - love
vehicle - lincoln
city - lafayette, IN
boy name - larry
girl name - lisa
drink - lemonade
occupation - lawyer
something you wear - lipstick
celebrity - leonardo dicaprio
food - lobster
something found in bathroom - lotion
reason for being late - long lines
cartoon character - linus
something you shout - look out!
animal - lion
body part - leg
word to describe you - B 'L' E S S E D! [looser was the only thing that came to mind!]

- STARTING WEEK 26 -

fetal development in pregnancy
[ending week 25 - starting week 26]
ahniér in 6th month

from head to foot, ahniér's now about 13½" long & she's about 1½# in weight [an average size rutabaga...pictured below] - she's also started to finally put on the baby fat, which will be the one main ongoing change in appearance in the upcoming weeks - as she does, her wrinkled skin will begin to smooth out & she'll start to look more & more like a newborn - she's also growing more hair & if you could see it, you'd now be able to discern its color & texture, although both may change after she's born - 'mama' may be getting tired of all the oddities her body's putting her through including beginning to itch all over (everywhere) & growing additional thick hair herself too!

ahniér’s physical proportions are evening out at this point & most of her remaining development will largely be weight gain & lots & lots of nervous system development - the good news is: if ahniér's born premature now she’ll be more likely to survive without too much trauma as her lungs began to produce 'surfactant' last week, which means her tiny respiratory system's getting stronger with each passing day - yes, now’s a good time for a minor sigh of relief & a quick pat on the back for 'mama' - all that hard work & conscientious living's really getting ahniér prepared for a healthy delivery [keep up the fabulous work 'mama'!]

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this week ahniér will be scootching slowly out of the old breech position & starting to rotate (already!) into a better position for exit during herr birth - her head & feet are slowly rotating so that her head's pointed down towards the birth canal - time's short [or really long, depending on who you ask], just 14 weeks left before you can go back to being a single-resident human

- A SICKO AMONG US -

well, in the night, kiara woke up crying that her throat hurt YUK! - i'd decided that she'd stay home from school today & the only thing i'd to do today was go to trader joes to get her (kiara) some more food - i figured with just a sore throat, she could go alone so we got ready & headed out - while at tj's, she started complaining her tummy hurt YUK! - after we left i told her that maybe it was hurting because she'd not eaten lunch & asked her what she wanted - she said, "soup" & i thought that was a pretty good choice as well - olive garden is just about a block down the road from tj's so i said we'd stop in there & she could eat their unlimited soup - we got in & she stated she was gonna choke (not choke like a gag/cough, but to my kids, choke's the full blown throw up) - we ran to the restroom & nothing happened so we returned & i begged her that if she felt that way to run fast to the bathroom & she agreed - i told her she could lay down on the booth bench as she'd then said she couldn't eat anything YUK - we got our food, ate, got everything ready & then woke kiara up just in time to leave, come home & lay everyone down for naps - she basically passed out from not feeling good - we've got 2 stops to make tonight so she's staying home with brittan & hopefully will feel better soon - these pics were taken when we arrived home today about about 2pm - kiara's the only one that's asleep, the other 2 are faking it

- DUH -

tonight i was putting all the girls down to bed & after i'd prayed with them & was walking out of ruby's room, i noticed her pullup laying there - [keeping in mind, she's deaf], i turned & signed, "here's your pullup" & she looked at me with raised eyebrows & said loudly [verbally], "DUH!"

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it just sounded so funny coming from her as i know she's heard that before with her cochlear implant & that's not something they teach her in speech therapy!!

- PLEASE PRAY -

steven curtis chapman’s youngest child died wednesday evening after being struck by a car driven by her teenage brother in the driveway of the family’s williamson county home - maria, one of the christian singer’s six children, was taken by lifeflight to vanderbilt hospital, which confirmed the death, according to laura mcpherson, a spokeswoman for the tennessee highway patrol - "the 5-year-old was hit by an SUV driven by her teenage brother", she said - police didn't give the driver’s name - "the teen was driving a toyota land cruiser down the driveway of the rural home at about 5:30pm & several children were playing in the area", mcpherson said - "he didn't see maria in the driveway before the vehicle struck her", she said - “it appears to be a terrible accident & no charges are expected", mcpherson said - "the accident was witnessed by two other children & the entire family was home at the time", mcpherson said

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singer/songwriter chapman, who recently was inducted into music city walk of fame, is one of contemporary christian music’s most recognizable & most awarded names - he & his wife mary beth have long been supporters of international adoption, having brought three girls from china into their family - maria was the youngest - the couple's so active in the cause that they formed an organization, shaohannah’s hope, to aid families wanting to adopt - with his latest music tour, which came through nashville in november, chapman started a campaign called “change for orphans” - he asked audience members at each stop to bring spare change to the concert, where it was counted & given to a local family to aid in their adoption process - “i don’t know of anybody who loves his children more than he does & is so committed to the adoption concept, & to lose one, no matter what the circumstances, is heartbreaking beyond all comprehension”, said john styll, president of the nashville-based gospel music association - “he talks about his kids all the time - that’s his life - his kids are more important to him than music, that’s for sure”

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the tragedy was announced during wednesday-night services at harpeth hills church of christ, which the family attends - maria had just graduated from the church preschool & word spread throughout the tight-knit christian music community on wednesday evening - styll got the news not long after maria’s death - “i’m confident i can speak for everyone in the community to say we'll do everything we can to support this family, as we'd do at any time, but especially at a time like this”, he said

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most of the chapman family was at vanderbilt children’s hospital after the accident & couldn't be contacted - the long, gravel driveway leading to the home west of franklin was blocked off by williamson county sheriff’s deputies

(left to right: will franklin, maria, steven, shaoey, mary beth, stevey joy, caleb & emily)

- LOCKED OUT -

yep, i got locked out...out of my storage unit that is! - we loaded down the van last night to the max, since we've got to be out of this house in just a few more weeks & i planned on taking a van load over to our 'little' storage unit & dropping it off - i get there & my key won't work - i called spike, he called the owners & they said they'd accidentally put the wrong lock on our unit the other day when spike was over there GRRRR - i didn't know what to do as there was no where to put kiara when i picked her up from school & i didn't have time to take the stuff somewhere else to drop it off - spike then reminded me we'd our camper stored there as well, so i went & stacked everything in the camper WHEW

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we'll be getting a 'big' storage unit this week & will transfer everything from the little to the big, then we'll move all of what we've to take with us, over to the rental house - we'll stay there about 4-5 months & then we'll move from there in the new house & will also move all our things out of the big storage unit as well

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so, all in all, we'll be moving from somewhere to somewhere else many time in the next 5 months & i'm already tired - if anyone has any free time, loves to pack & unpack (or babysit & carpool), please let me know as i'm sure i can find something for you to do

- "MOMMY, WATCH THE BACK OF MY HEAD" -

today, karleigh says, "mommy, watch the back of my head" & then she turns away from me so i could only see the back of her head & she begins to shake it back & forth as if she's saying, 'no' - she then turns to me & smiles to which i say, "you're shaking your head?"

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she says, "no mommy, watch the BACK of my head!" & then she turns away again & begins to shake it back & forth the very same way - she turns to me & says, "did you see me?" - i say, "i saw you shaking your head 'no', is that what you mean?"

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she says, "i'll do it one more time for you, but this time watch the BACK OF MY HEAD, okay?" & then turns to repeat what i've already witnessed 3 times now - i said, "karleigh, you're shaking your head back & forth, but what's it for?" - she says [grinning from ear to ear], "that's what they do in the movie enchanted when they're kissing, so i'm just pretending [& then winks at me!]"

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UGH, pray for this mama ya'll!!

- DEFINITION OF 'MOTHER' -

this' for the mothers who've sat up all night with sick toddlers in their arms, wiping up barf laced with oscar mayer wieners & cherry kool-aid saying, "it's okay honey, mommy's here"

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who've sat in rocking chairs for hours on end soothing crying babies who can't be comforted

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this' for all the mothers who show up at work with spit-up in their hair, milk stains on their blouses & diapers in their purse

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for all the mothers who run carpools, make cookies & sew halloween costumes

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this' for the mothers who gave birth to babies they'll never see & the mothers who took those babies in & gave them homes

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this' for the mothers whose priceless art collections are hanging on their refrigerator doors

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for all the mothers who froze their buns on metal bleachers at football or soccer games instead of watching from the warmth of their cars & that when their kids asked, "did you see me, mom?" they could say, "of course, i wouldn't have missed it for the world," & mean it

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this' for all the mothers who yell at their kids in the grocery store & swat them in despair when they stomp their feet & scream for ice cream before dinner & for all the mothers who count to 10 instead, but realize how child abuse happens

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this' for all the mothers who go hungry, so their children can eat

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for all the mothers who read, "goodnight, moon" twice a night for a year & then read it again, "just one more time"

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this' for all the mothers who taught their children to tie their shoelaces before they started school & for all the mothers who opted for velcro instead

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this' for all the mothers who teach their sons to cook & their daughters to sink a jump shot

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this' for every mother whose head turns automatically when a little voice calls "mom?" in a crowd, even though they know their own offspring are at home, away at college, or have their own families

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this' for all the mothers who sent their kids to school with stomach aches, assuring them they'd be just fine once they got there, only to get a call from the school nurse an hour later asking them to please pick them up...right away

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this' for mothers whose children have gone astray & who can't find the words to reach them

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for all the mothers who bite their lips until they bleed when their 14 year old dyes their hair green

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for all the mothers of the victims of recent school shootings & the mothers of those who did the shooting

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for the mothers of the survivors & the mothers who sat in front of their tv's in horror, hugging their child who just came home from school, safely

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this' for all the mothers who taught their children to be peaceful & now pray they come home safely from a war

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what makes a good mother anyway? - is it patience? - compassion? - broad hips? - the ability to nurse a baby, cook dinner & sew a button on a shirt, all at the same time? - or is it in her heart? - is it the ache you feel when you watch your son or daughter disappear down the street, walking to school alone for the very first time? - the jolt that takes you from sleep to dread, from bed to crib at 2 A.M. to put your hand on the back of a sleeping baby? - the panic, years later, that comes again at 2 A.M. when you just want to hear their key in the door & know they're safe again in your home? - or the need to flee from wherever you are & hug your child when you hear news of a fire, a car accident or a child dying?

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the emotions of motherhood are universal & so our thoughts are for young mothers stumbling through diaper changes & sleep deprivation & mature mothers learning to let go

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for working mothers & stay-at-home mothers - single mothers & married mothers - mothers with money, mothers without - this' for you all - for all of us... hang in there - in the end we can only do the best we can - tell them every day that we love them, pray & never stop being a mom

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please pass this to a wonderful mother or mother figure you know

- WHAT WAS THE TRUTH? / WHAT WAS THE LIE? -

well sorry all, but i forgot to post the answer to the '5 truths/1 lie' game awhile back [OOOPS!] - here's the choices you'd to choose from... 5 are truths, 1's a lie

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1) i smoked for one summer when a friend of mine & myself were trying to 'act grown up' & have never smoked again
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2) i drank 'beer' once & quickly found out it wasn't really beer, but instead... motor oil (just a beer can my father was using to store old oil in!)
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3) i, along with 2 friends, tp'd (toilet papered) the entire high school's front lawn after sneaking out of my parents home in the middle of the night
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4) the most terrifying thing to me in all the world is bats (the mammal)
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5) i graduated & never skipped a day of school (not even a class!)
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6) once, when selling concessions in high school, i'd to take a large tray of sodas up into the stands & on my way up, i tripped & spilled them all over a group of people sitting there to watch the game

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#3 is the lie!

- FOR RENT -

well, i spent my entire morning searching for an apartment/house for rent UGH - i hate doing this, but if we've got to be out by june 26 & our new home won't be completed until the end of october, we've gotta find a place to stay, but moving twice does NOT sound fun to me at all! - i started by checking out apartments, but was floored to find they're as much as the house payment we're making now! [to some you make think i'm living in the dark ages, but really i had no idea they were that much] - i did find a home [3 bedroom, 2 full baths] that we could handle - i'm going to check it out this afternoon so i'll let you know how it goes - he said he was even willing to let us take it on a 4 or 5 month lease in stead of a 1 year (PTL) - he bought it, gutted it, put everything in brand new & it's supposed to be finished today - we'd be living in basically a brand new home, until our brand new home's completed, but moving twice does NOT sound fun to me at all! - brittan & ruby would be able to ride the bus to/from school, but i'd have to take/pick up kiara everyday as it's out of the school district from where we'll be living eventually - i'll post later on tonight as to how the place was & what i think, i'm just soooooooo ready to get this move behind us as moving twice does NOT sound fun to me at all!

- QUALIFICATION DAY -

spike [aka: honey, sweetie, baby-that's enough for now-*wink*]

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY BABE!

well, tomorrow's spike & my anniversary [17y] & so we headed to the 500 race track today - we'd a wonderful time, great weather, perfect company & all in all a good day! - we were going to head down tomorrow too for the last day of qualifications, but we just got home [11pm] & have been gone since around 9:30-10am this morning & we're bushed

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since it looks as if we've sold our house [PTL], i think we're going to take tomorrow & get some more things done in preparation to move - we've got some boxes out in the garage that i'm going to pack up yet, more things & spike's going to work all morning long on getting all the final paperwork that we need to be able to turn for the finalizing of this house

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we'd already taken off tomorrow morning from church [told those around us that we'd not be there tomorrow, etc.] & so with this house thing coming up, we're just taking the day & a bit further along with it... we're soooooooo ready to get this all behind us!

- GOING TO ANOTHER LEVEL -

alright, it's official, as of last night we had an offer on our house - for us, it's not the best offer as they asked for a lot of 'extras' [lots] thrown in for good measure - we counter offered tonight [about an hour or so ago & right now it's almost midnight if that tells you anything] & accepted most of what they asked for [even some of the things that really hurt us], but didn't accept them all, so now we wait
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they [& us too] are all pre-approved, so now once they hopefully accept our counter [which their realtor thinks they will], we both have to get our final mortgage approval - if it all goes as planned [pray it does!], then we'll close on this house on june 16 & will be given 10 days to move out totally - between now & then [june 16], we've got to come up with a place to live from the time we close on this house to moving into the one we're building [total of about 4 months] for this family of 6 - we've also got to have all the financing worked out for us to be able to close on the new home [4 months down line] & for us to have it when it's needed!
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after that very stressful [to me] meeting at starbucks, spike & i went & had a bite to eat & talk - we then left to head home, but had to drive separately as we all met, since we were coming from all different directions - i got in my van & went to turn on the radio & instantly my cd player kicked on & out BLASTED the first song of our praise/worship team at church called, "going to another level" (chorus below)
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i'm goin' to another level
i'm goin' to another level
don't stop reachin'
keep believin'
come on we're goin' to another level
don't stop pressin'
for your blessin'
come on we're goin' to another level
gotta keep pressin' on
gotta keep on pressin' on

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i just thought that was appropriate for what we're going through, don't you?
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spike has projects [he's a project manager], that have said they'd hire him whenever they get ready to do something & a couple of them could literally start anyday - it'd REALLY be nice if at least one of those would take off right away, as it'd make the funding of this thing a whole lot better for us so please pray with/for us
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if all goes well, we'll be moving in june, living in an apartment [all 6 of us] until at least the beginning of october [keep in mind that we'll be adding another little person [total of 7 now], come late august/early september], then moving again in october for good & then shooting right into the holidays EEEEK! - yes, please pray!!

- SIGN UP & EARN $ -

it's very much like paypal, except without the fees - you get $25 for signing up & then $10 for each person who signs up under you - you can make some serious cash by adding a badge to your blog sidebar & spreading the word - there's nothing to lose & you can easily raise money for your adoptions [or anything else you're needing money for!] - click the badge below & earn some cash!

- STARTING WEEK 25 -

fetal development in pregnancy

(ending week 24 - starting week 25)

ahniér in 6th month

this' another big week for ahniér! - at this point, she's growing steadily, with about a quarter of a pound (now weighing between 1.4# - 1.9#) of new weight & still approximately 1' long (picture an ear of corn), that makes a pretty lean figure, but her body's filling out proportionally & she'll soon put on more baby fat - sure, she's not so chubby yet, but just wait that'll come - her lungs are also getting more prepared for the outside world - just take a look at the checklist for this week 1] ears: done 2] fingernails: done 3] lung walls: secreting 'surfactant' what's that? - well, surfactant's sort of what it sound like - a surface-activated fat whose main purpose is to assist ahniér's little lungs during inflation [as in, filling with air, not getting more expensive] - just in case you’re curious, she's still breathing in amniotic fluid, preparing & rehearsing the lungs an oxygen-filled life outside the womb - by the end of this week, she'll weigh around 2# & be 14" long - she may even be a little more plump, but isn't anywhere near her full baby-fatted cute-self - most of the “filling out” is coming up in that long awaited (& slightly dreaded?) third trimester - woohoo! - get ready! - her skin's thin, translucent & wrinkled, her brain's growing rapidly & her taste buds are developing - her lungs are developing "branches" of the respiratory "tree" & cells that produce surfactant, a substance that helps the air sacs inflate easily

- MY SILLY (helpful) SISTER -

for those of you that don't already know, my parents adopted a 14y girl from haiti that just arrived home this february '08 - madisyn helps out so much around the house & is so thoughtful & considerate - when she first got home, mom would let her do a few things, but never 'made' her as she wanted her to blend in & didn't want her to think they just adopted her to 'work' for them - after just a few weeks, madisyn broke down & when asked what was wrong, she said, "i want to do more around here - mom, you do everything & only let me do just a little bit & i want to do more!" - they all agreed that she's part of the family, so therefore she can help out as much as they do & it's been going great

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well mom told me today (in front of madisyn) that last night mom was showering & madisyn was cleaning in the kitchen - well, when mom got out, madisyn said, "look what i did!!!" [& was pleased at her HUGE accomplishment] - mom looked & you all know what teflon looks like in a new pot/pan? - it's the shiny black stuff that coats the pan so things don't stick, right? - well, guess what??? - yep, mom's new pots/pans have NOOOOOOOOOOOOO teflon left on them!! - madisyn said that she couldn't believe how dirty mom's pots/pans were because in haiti when they're left in the fire to cook foods, they get all black & you must scrub them really, REALLY hard to get all that black off & then that tells you they're then... clean - well, she wanted to give her mom 'clean' pots/pans & boy was she a happy young girl to do so too

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as mom was telling me this, i looked at madisyn & she was just beaming from ear to ear - i said, "you really got it clean, huh?" - she smiled & said, "VERY clean!"

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[sidenote: you all must know one thing - years ago when my memaw [mom's mom] was alive, she stayed at the house one day & while mom was gone/busy, etc., she cleaned up after dinner - well, she'd never had any of the new fangled stuff called teflon pots/pans, so she scrubbed the heck out of them & took all the teflon off - after memaw left, mom noticed what she'd done & was furious! - not mad at memaw helping, as she appreciated that, but we'd no money to get any more pots/pans & she was so upset for what she was left with - it's kind of been a funny jab over the years remembering back & saying, "you remember when your memaw ruined my pots/pans?", etc. & now she's got a daughter that did the same thing, but....... since memaw's passed & we all miss her so much, i know mom would love to have her back, even if it was just to destroy her pots/pans again & for this reason if for no other, madisyn got in no trouble at all & mom will still go on using those scratched up, ugly pots/pans because life's short]

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memaw... i'm sure madisyn would say thank you if she only knew how you paved the way for her!

- I'M GIVING UP! -

...on brittan that is

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now don't all panic & think i don't love her, i love her more than words can say & she knows this, but i give up!

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she's a great girl & very mature for her age (in a lot of areas), but then there's the 'forget' area when it comes to finishing things UGH - i finally told her yesterday when she came home from school, "i'm giving up!" - she looked at me wide eyed & i said, "i'm not telling you anymore to feed & water your cats, gather all trash or clean up the entire kitchen after dinner (which are her jobs) - i said, "you say things like, 'i fed them, but just forgot to water them [cats]', 'i gathered the trash, but just forgot to get that last wastebasket, so i'll just get it later' or 'oh, i got everything else put up, but did i forget to put that in the refrigerator?' & i'm not messing with it any longer - i'm not asking you anymore, i'll just do what needs to be done...myself"

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i get all done & she, still looking wide eyed at me says, "gosh, i know what you mean, but i never realized you were doing it all for me when i 'forget' - you're telling me this & you're not even mad!" - i told her i loved her & off i went

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later that night she helped (without being asked) clean up everything after dinner, took care of her cats food, water & litter box, helped with laundry, got everything ready for school & asked if there was anything else that needed to be done (as she knew we'd a house showing today), etc.

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don't get me wrong, she helps out soooooooooooo much around here, she really does & i shouldn't complain at all, but it drives me nuts to see a job ½ done

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she did a fabulous job last night & something tells me that now she 'sees' what i'm talking about, it won't be an issue any longer!!

- A FALLING STAR -

although we didn't take this picture, spike & i did see a falling star on tuesday night on our way home from the airport - we were driving along, chatting, etc. & there it was! - it was neat as i've only seen 2 in my lifetime!! - just thought i'd share 'our find' with ya'll

- END OF THE YEAR... for some -

karleigh on her 'graduation day'

[ruby's picture to be inserted here later tonight]

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well, today's ruby & karleigh's last day of school/program day - we had karleigh's program this morning & ruby's is tonight - brittan & kiara still go until the 29th, but they're not far off!

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we're looking so forward to our summer of camping as much as we can (YEAH), vacation at myrtle beach with caswells again (double YEAH!) & ahniér arriving (triple YEAH!), among other things as well - i know it'll be over before we know it, so i'm going to work very hard at making the best of every day (even on those 'rough days')

- HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY -

spike's mom

my mom
"A newborn's conversation with God"

a baby asked god, "they tell me you're sending me to earth tomorrow, but how am i going to live there being so small & helpless?" god said, "your angel will be waiting for you & will take care of you." the child further inquired, "but tell me, here in heaven i don't have to do anything but sing & smile to be happy." god said, "your angel will sing for you & will also smile for you & you'll feel your angel's love & be very happy." again the child asked, "how am i going to be able to understand when people talk to me if i don't know the language?" god said, "your angel will tell you the most beautiful & sweet words you'll ever hear & with much patience & care, your angel will teach you how to speak." "what am i going to do when i want to talk to you?" god said, "your angel will place your hands together & will teach you how to pray." "but who'll protect me?" god said, "your angel will defend you even if it means risking its life." "but i'll always be sad because i'll not see you anymore." god said, "your angel will always talk to you about me & will teach you the way to come back to me, even though i'll always be next to you." at that moment there was much peace in heaven, but voices from earth could be heard & the child hurriedly asked, "god, if i'm to leave now, please tell me my angel's name." god said, "you'll simply call her, 'mom'."

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we just wanted to say happy mothers day to both our moms - we're blessed to have you for mothers & hope you'd a wonderful day!