Tuesday, April 29, 2014

I'm the Mom of a Teenager



Peyton's Birthday Letter At 13

Whoa!  When did it happen?  It is so difficult to fathom that my baby boy, my first born is thirteen years old.
I am so proud of you son.  You are growing so tall, taller than me, and your voice is deepening into maturity. And we are starting to have real conversations, I mean the serious ones like dreams and goals, priorities and plans.  Here are just a few things about you at thirteen, I want to always remember.

You still love to read.  We are starting to read some of the same books, and it connects us in a way that I cherish.

You like hot tea.  You prefer black, but since its caffienated you drink more herbal teas, your fave is Apple Spice (because yes too much caffeine is not a good thing!)

You can't wait to be old enough to go on a Missions trip.  Fifteen is the magic number and you are counting down the years. I could not be prouder that this is on your list of things you want to do.

You currently see robotics or computer engineering in your future, and talk about working for NASA like its a sure thing.  Your grades reflect your intelligence, but you really don't study too hard...your brain is still absorping info like a sponge with no sign of running out of space.

You like cool cars, and these are convos you have with your daddy...I can't even begin to try to write which ones you really like.  Very limited knowledge in your mother!

You have become a fish.  You are on a swim team, Cape County Castaways and are breaking your personal records every meet.

You also have discovered pole vaulting.  You tried track team this year and pole vaulting has become your thing.  I'm not nervous about this at all.

Your smile melts my heart, and I still see my little boy hidden in those eyes.  I know we have some craziness ahead of us, but don't ever question or forget how much I love you.  Dad too!

Love,
Mom


                                       You had a swim party with a lot of your buddies to celebrate!

                            
                                




Let's Party

I had the most fun, most beautiful, most fabulous little girl shower ever.  I can't even tell you how much fun it was to laugh and eat and laugh with all my friends and family in celebration for Isabel's soon home coming.  They say a picture says a thousand words, so I'm just going to post a ton of them because there is no way I can express how amazing my friends and family are.


   





And then I got to go home and get Isabel's room ready, really ready for her to come home.
                                 


Wherever you are, my love will find you.

Really I need to write multiple posts, and have been meaning to but at this point...it ain't happenin'.  So here's what's up in a nutshell.  Things are moving as slow as molasses, but after not moving at all we will take it.  Two families have received first approval last month, which is huge after months of nothing.  We are hopeful we will receive our approval next month which would allow us to travel by August, hopefully.  At this point though things are so mixed up and not going by any of the norms that we just don't know. Most of the time I'm at peace and we have been so screaming busy that I don't have time to think.  Until I get an update, another update, with pictures showing us how much she is growing up without us. (Insert tears, anger, frustration, and bittersweet joy)  She is still itty bitty, only weighing 24 lbs and is 2 feet 8 in. tall (5th percentile for weight and height.)  Our report indicated that the social worker is working on preparing her for separation from her foster family, and that her foster mother lets her look at our pictures every day and talks to her about her family (insert more tears).  I hate that it is taking so long, I hate seeing her one year older from the time we were blessed to know we would be her parents, it just plain stinks.  My faith is stretching and I'm clinging to promises, but stretching is painful and clinging is hard work.  I just want her to know that if it was in our power we would have been on a plane a year ago.  Goodness she is so beautiful.








We also sent another care package.  In her hands in one of the photos she is holding one of the picture albums we sent her.  I so hope these care packages are connecting her to us, it's all we can do.  Tears, prayer, and love are squeezed into every ziploc.  In this one we sent the book, Wherever you are, my love will find you, with a Thai translation. And we mean it, every word.  Wherever and however long it takes our love will find you and bring you home.