Six Months In

It has been six months since the boys first arrived.  Life is most definitely different in the Hughes home, but everyone has adjusted well.  The big kids are a huge help and love having the kids here (most of the time)! 

It amazes me to think back to those first days they were here and to realize how much they have grown.  We had a hard time getting big brother to go to sleep...especially in a bed.  Now, I can lay him down, kiss him, and tell him I'll be back to check on him in a few minutes, and all the littles are in bed by 8:00!  What???  The first four months it took us 2-3 hours to put them to bed every night and one of us fell asleep with big brother almost every night.  Those nights were difficult, but we are in a good routine now!

Little brother was talking quite a bit when he arrived but mostly like a parrot...repeating words we said.  However, there are a few things we are really missing now that he is starting to talk in sentences:

"some" is what he said as soon as he heard a drive thru bag enter the car (he was rear-facing)
"bite" is what he said ANYTIME someone had food because he wanted some too!

And we could not get that little guy to say his name for anything! He was convinced his name was his brother's.  It was really about three months here before he would finally say HIS name!  We were all so excited.

He was so precious and sweet.  I would tell everyone that he was just as sweet as he was cute...and then he turned TWO!! WOW!  Some kids move through the twos without much notice, but this one jumped in full throttle!  He hits, throws and pitches a tantrum with the best of them!  Now, I have to keep reminding myself of how sweet he really was!  He still has his moments, but they don't call them the Terrible Twos for nothing!

When we got the boys, we knew that mom was pregnant and due in June.  As much as I wanted to take her, my husband just finally put his foot down and said "no".  She was born only two days before I left for Europe for two weeks, and everyone thought she was going to have lots of problems due to the circumstances of the pregnancy.  However, she was born PERFECT!  The boys and I were able to see her at visits every once-in-a-while, but she wasn't always there.

Fast forward to August when the kids' attorney called me and asked if I would be willing to take baby sister temporarily since mom would be getting her back very soon.  I told him we could but only temporarily.  It took weeks for him to make it happen, but the judge eventually approved the move, and we got her mid-September.  It was a nightmare, though, because CPS and my agency were not happy about the judge's orders and tried desperately to have them overturned.  Every day was an adventure as I was getting calls from all those involved, and no one seemed to know what the others were doing.  I told several of them that I just didn't understand why they couldn't all communicate!  Why did they need me to get everyone on the same page?  It was a communication nightmare, and eventually I just told them all that I felt like my parenting was being questioned since they didn't want the baby to come to me.  I told the CPS worker that baby belonged in my house more than anyone else's (except her parents) because I had been praying for her for months before she was born and already loved her family.  In addition, the boys needed to understand that she was really their sister - not just a baby they saw every once-in-a-while.  Finally, I got her, and she is amazing!

I look at her every day and am amazed at how perfect she is after being exposed to so much in utero.  I tell her how precious she is and how much she is wanted and loved!  She coos back at me and gives the best smiles and giggles!  We are having so much fun with her! It is like playing with a baby doll since we know she will only be here a little while longer!  Everyone wants to hold her and help with her.  She barely cries, and smiles ALL the time!

They are a precious sibling group!  I am so happy we have had the opportunity to foster them all.  They will be going home soon, and it will be difficult, but we have covered them in love and prayer!  I am confident that God will protect them and draw him to himself as they grow because I pray, almost every night, that no matter how they are raised, they will always be pulled toward doing the right thing and having a relationship with Him! 

Big Day

It's going to be a big day.  The dog is having surgery to remove a large cyst on his chest.  Mary Frances is home sick.  Thomas and Mary Frances have a musical this weekend with 4 different performances.  The first is tonight.  Chase has 2 football games tonight and then goes to a friend's house for the night because they are leaving at 5:30 tomorrow morning for a baseball tournament two hours away. AND...the CPS caseworker and two representatives from our agency will be here any minute with our first two foster kids!!!  This is what I've come to call "The Hughes Way".  We do things big and all at once!  Why not, right?

Anyway, I am surprisingly calm even though I have not cared for little ones their ages (18 mos and 3) in 8+ years!!!!  I am a little nervous, excited, and anxious - but calm over all.

Thomas has built a train track upstairs with several trains waiting to ride on it.  Mary Frances is finding Disney, Jr. so they can have something familiar on when they enter.  Chase has prepared his room so both boys can stay with him.  The house is as clean as its going to get (or ever be for the next many months, probably)! Their doctors appointment has been made for this afternoon. One car seat is installed, and I don't have any clue how to install the other.  I have Baby Magic, juice, and goldfish, and I guessed on their diaper sizes.  I have no clue what they are coming with other than a huge need for love and attention.

So, I am ready for what is about to walk in the door, I think.  I can only imagine how scared they are - coming from the home they have known for only the last 4 months.  This is going to be an adventure - for all 7 of us! I just keep reminding myself that we aren't doing it for us.  We are doing it because there are children in need, and we can do something about it.

So, here goes...

Love my Boys

Dating Rules

Seem a little early for a post like this?  It is!  These are actually the dating rules by parents had for me...in my dad's handwriting!  I love them, and I remember every one of them vividly!

My mom and sister found these when they were cleaning out the house before moving last year!

Do I HAVE to take a shower?

I've always heard how dirty boys are and how difficult it can be to get them to shower.  You would think I was torturing them every night just by saying, "Go take a shower!".  

The dermatologist recommended a cream for some sun spots on Thomas' face the other day, but after realizing they will go away on their own anyway, I refused the cream.  I explained to him that it was hard enough to get him in the shower.  And, if I'm lucky enough to get him in the shower, I have a hard time getting him to actually use the soap!  A cream needing to be used daily was not about to happen!

There are MANY nights that I have to send Thomas back to the shower to actually use soap. A sniff test is not an abnormal thing in our house!  (And, I might add, it isn't only a boy problem!)

We gave some women a good laugh yesterday in Target when we were passing the shampoo aisle.  I asked the kids if everyone had shampoo.  Mary Frances replied, "yes" (only to not wash her hair in the shower last night because she didn't have any shampoo)!??!  The boys said, "We don't use shampoo!" which brought a smile to everyone standing around us as I rolled my eyes and smiled with them!  What can I do other than stand there with them?  Oh well..."this too shall pass!"