Kids Drawings are so insiteful!

Melea is now drawing legs and arms and hair on her "little" people drawings. I just love looking at my children's art work....even if most end up in the file 13 basket (trash).

But I was really so excited to get this little copy from her teacher of her dry erase board from school.

That is an "awesome" M. She can actually write all the letters in her name....just not at the same time! Proof was when we were writing her valentines on Sunday! I wrote her name out and asked her to write it on her valentines.....she proceeded to write one letter on each valentine..... she got all the letter correct, just not on the same card! So I hope someone realizes that she is both "E" and "L" and "A" and "M".

Though ironically she recognizes any letter I give her (even if she feins stupidity for her teachers).

But it was so exciting to see her little "spider" person and though it has no shoes (Like Colin's) it is awfully cute and memorable!

Tommorrow my little pear will turn six and I can't wait to see how much she likes her new Dora dress!

Ironic as this sounds.......

it was really a boring week! After Miranda started school....and registering Adrian for KGTN and voting on Tuesday....and finishing our taxes (still got to do the trust for the kids though)......not much else happened here.

Eric was at a conference in FLA all week and I had the kids to myself.... so you can imagine the nulear bomb that went off in my house in my house, but it was absolutely boring.

I worked on making the birthday invitations to Melea, Miranda and Jordan's combined birthday, exercised a whole lot (about 10 miles walking / jogging this week) and for the first time in 7 1/2 years ..........

I HAD NO EARLY INTERVENTION or THERAPY VISITS OR DR. APPOINTMENTS or anything!

it was amazing! (and very quiet.... though Adrian really makes up for it when she gets home each day)

I also did a lot of laundry and thought about getting ready to switch out the spring clothes....but the fact I hate ythat and the 12 degree forcast for saturday made me wait for another week!

So this weekend, is finishing invitations, getting all the valentines signed by the kids.... and picking out what treats Mela will take to school for her birthday next week.

Miranda was off with her sisters

to school this morning! I swear she was all smiles and so excited that she couldn't quit squealing and making happy noises when the bus came!



I just couldn't get the five in one shot! One of them was always moving out of frame!

It was just amazing to see her about as big as her backpack! But I swear she could have fit in it Friday, but today she looks just a little bigger! I am so proud of our little girl!

What a big step for such a beautiful princess!

QUIZ..... Jordan or Adrian.......

After going through the older photos for Miranda's birthday and talking to Daddy yesterday (he was wondering if Adrian was ever as chubby as Jordan) I was struck by the similairities that everyone mentions!


All these photos are either Jordan or Adrian at about the same age. Which is Princess Grumpy and which is Sir Peas-a-lot?




a)















b)

c)

d)

SO the question is....... is it just superficial (on the outside) or will my Peas-a- lot turn in to a Grumpy soon!

Well..... I thought I would list the steps in the "potty training guide" for/by my kids

I have five little ones in diapers or pull ups and a little princess who thinks should be able to wear a pull up cause Colin & Melea are older.... so there is way to much talk about urination and defication in our house so I will let you in on the steps and where each one is to date!

1) We figure out we don't like having our diaper changed! But we also don't like being messy either! (Miranda is here..... but she is well on her way to step 2)


2) We learn to take off our own clothes and start exploring what is on our bottom and have a lot of fun making mom put our clothes back on all the time (Jordan is here...... just today I have put his pants back on 11 times) as well as get really interested at putting stuff in the potty and playing in the water seems to happen here!

3) We now consistently take off all of our clothes and bottom covering and like running around butt naked and peeing on anything while mom chases us! As well as requiring me to be ever vigellent at locating the lost diaper(s) and missing clothes...... (Eliza is here)

This is one of my least favorite stages.... only trumped by the poop scooting & painting stage. It is also characterized by putting diapers in weird spots or making hats from them! Eliza is an actual master of gettin her diaper off through her leg or some other contortion I have yet seen her physically do.... but the clothes sometime stay on (or she puts them back on!)

Most of my children.... when in stage three........ get to wear pj's to nap in (cause it saves time and carpet cleaner). I just have to put it on backwards so they can't get out. This is the ironic thing from all that OT practice and learning to zip up your own coat.... you also learn to take of your clothes! Yeah (with a sarcastic note!) The backward PJ thing is after we have mastered safety pins, and safety pins through the zipper. If they are as good as colin was... eventually we have even had to safety pin the backwards pj mode.

4) The poop sco0ting and painting stage. Enough said.... no one is here now! Thank theLord! but believe it or not this was Adrians favorite stage! SHe stayed in it from 13 months till she was potty trained fully at about 27 months!

5) They I have to point to my body parts and ask you what they are called tell you what they do phase......

I pretty much thank heaven that Colin doen't talk cause he runs around signing penis and poop a lot and I am happy yhta most people do not know sign language well enough to interpret this.......

however this is a major break through cause at least he knows he poops & pees.... I think he was so confused for a few years about where it came frome.... he would always look at me puzzled and put his pout to the side and shrug his shoulders. (Colin is sort of here..... but at least he now keeps his diaper on at night! So I hope no more stage 4 cause he has outgrown most of the zipper one piece pj's and is so limber I have actually watched him wriggle out of them

6) We are trying to be potty trained and go sometimes ....WHEN WE FEEL LIKE IT!!! but other times we just fill up our pull up and say we do not want to be changed and protest at the top of our lungs if mommy makes us change our pants! (Melea is here)

Fun thing about this stage..... is there seems to be no rhyme or reason about when she wants to use the potty...... it is her idea. I am looking foward to summer when she can just wear her underware & swim suit outside to play and then if she "misses" she gets an immediate consequence that we can't do in the house.....

Ok really this mom is just dreaming for summer with diaper / swimsuit days and 1/2 the laundry I have in the winter!

7) The I wear underware inside my pullup so I know when I pee and mess up. (Melea is here on the weekends and after school) It really makes her remeber.... so I know when we can do this almost all day without the pull up .....she will be finished up soon

8) In the stage where we yell at the top of lungs in the mall...."MOM why don't you just pee in your diaper!" When I have just told Eric I need to find a bathroom NOW, and your daughter thinks a sanitary napkin is a grown up diaper. (ADRIAN IS HERE....again there are days I am glad Colin only signs and Melea doesn't always speak clearly!)

9) We actually wear underware and are required to make 8 trips to the bathroom when we are out for 2 hours..... just so we can visit the toilet, say hi, and make sure we know where it is in case we need it (Adrian also here!)

10) The day I am most looking foward to....... not carrying a diaper bag (OK mine is a huge back back) anymore.... but a real small and sleak purse! I am thinking 2015 to 2018 as a possibility! With my luck backpacks will be the rage then!

We got to celebrate at our Favorite Mexican place

Miranda's Birthday today!!!!!

After digging out of the almost 10+ inches of snow; finding the van and getting all the children dressed and in the van..... we went to our favorite place..... to celebrate. I felt bad cause we didn't go yesterday, but the upper road to our house and the driveway didn't even get plowed till 4 pm friday.... and I wasn't in the mood to get us all killed for mexican food (though ADRIAN sure was)

The let Miranda wear the red velvet hat and gave ehr her ice cream and sang to her...... she hated the hate, but giggled the whole time they were singing!

And of course she loved the ice cream! SO did the rest of the children! Except for some reason Eliza would only eat it if I feed it to her (not daddy and she would not feed herself the ice cream) and Jordan eats ice cream like "DATA" from TNG in the one where he tastes it and it is revolting! Then asks for more.....he makes these amazing little cute funny, but goofy faces!

After that....we of course had to make a trip to walmart.... to get those last little school supplies, diapers, and new shoes, socks, and a new pair of laces for her old pair of shoes!

I actually managed a cart and COlin, Melea, Adrian and Miranda by my self...... three walkers and Miranda in the cart! Colin was the best listener and was so well behaved....Melea on the other hand ended up in the cart toward the end cause she kept wandering away in the shoe aisle .....side note also made I would not buy her or Miranda another set of "Dora" shoes..... OK really made I wouldn't buy them for her!

We had a great afternoon and it was so nice after being snowed in for almost 48 hours!

However the best surprise was getting home and finding a birthday package for Miranda from her birth grandparents! She and the rest of the kids were so anxious and Miranda has finally learned to love opening presents! I think she still likes that part better than finding out what is on the inside!

My littlest Princess is THREE TODAY!!!!

Three years ago today, a beautiful and precious angel feel to earth into the arms of a wonderful and loving couple. Our little girl was a complete surprise to this couple and for their own personal reasons they went in search of a family to raise her because they felt they would not be able to.


With the greatest love and joy Eric and I were accepted to be this beautiful angel's parents. We named her Miranda Olivia! with in an hour of learning about her! After four long weeks and a few days she was placed into our family's open Arms on March 4th 2005 throiugh the help of the Gladeny Center for Adoption.


So today we celebrate her third year on this planet today! I thought I woul lookback and remember how little she was and how far my beautiul "Manda's " has come!


We have been through one open heart surgery for her AV canal defect at 10 months; lots of prayers and worried nights; almost 450 hours of early intervention therapy, tons of prescription formula and hours fighting to make her eat and gain weight! 6 ISFP's; a developmental evaluation; her first IEP and conference, 3 different hospitalizations for pneumonia ( one was eleven days); 2 cardiac cathederizations, 3 sets of ear tubes; an adenoidectomy, a overnight sleep study (did not involve sleeping on her part); 2 MRI's, a cat scan; an EEG; a ton of xrays, lots of bloodwork, two ambulance rides, oxygen at home, monitors and sleepless nights listening for them to go off, and lots and lots of head colds, severalear infections , permanent excema, nystagmus that could make you dizzy if you watch it, a TIA and most likely a seizure disorder too! and of course gallons and gallons of snot!



BUT WE WOULD NEVER TRADE A MINUTE OF THAT FOR ANYTHING! SHe is happy and thriving and and utterly an amazing little girl! SHe laughs she makes her sounds for animals, she is starting to sign more words and becoming her own little person whose favorite word for her mom is "NO" or "NO WAY".


She loves to eat and to play and to be held and to be tickled and sung to. SHe always points to her swing outside and wants to be in it with the "big" kids! She is growing and changing so rapidly that Eric and I are anxious and excited to see where she will go from here and is in such a big way going to benefit from starting school next monday that even I can't imagine what the next year will bring for us all accept the joy of being part of it with her!



So Enjoy the photos of my littlest princess in the Grumpy Family! and see how she has changed....... and we have so much planned! I know we will be sharing with you!



So happy Birthday my dear Miranda! And remember

we all love you! Especially all your sisters!