Thanks to some great editing software and the ability to upload only carefully selected pictures, it can often appear that life is perfect. And that is what we want right? Rarely do we ever post pictures of the mess in our lives or the chaos in our homes. But life isn't perfect and reality is messy. As November quickly comes to a close I am thankful for a full month of messy, crazy, chaotic days with sprinklings of amazing, beautiful and perfect moments!
So, let's be real....
Here is our pretty picture of the kids with their carefully carved pumpkins all happy and smiling.
Reality is that we carved pumpkins on November 19th (much to Ashley's frustration). And long before these pictured smiles were the shrill shrieks of a four year old who thought sticking hands in pumpkins was "YUCKY!!". Travis, the ever independent one, learned thru the school of hard knocks that what you draw cannot always be carved (yes...mom and dad tried to explain but sometimes that school of hard knocks is the best education ever!) And Toby went from screaming yucky to attempting to pick up every carving tool known to man.
November also meant our first family pictures taken by our sweet friend Heather at the local park. Here is my favorite picture (some of you may see this one again closer to Christmas).
Reality was quite different than this beautiful picture! It was a chilly day and Toby is already having trouble getting used to our environment....which is a nice way to say I carried a bag with boogie wipes and tissues to clean up the yuck. Heather would start with Ash and I to check the scene and get my mop of hair situated, then we would call in mr. statue (aka Travis) and Todd would come flying in after corralling Toby for a quick tissue wipe and a smile. Immediately after the shutter clicked Toby was off exploring again. Whew! Just as we all got situated for a picture and just before the shutter clicked we all heard a noise and Toby froze....a train! A real live train which meant all pictures stopped and we got to see a train up close for the first time. So thankful Heather was patient with us. Lol.
November also brought our first overnight guests since Toby came home as Todd's parents came for Thanksgiving. Toby thrives with routines but a wrench in that routine can be interesting. Overall, he did really well. We all did. I think I was super sensitive trying to be ever cautious and try to stop anything before it got started. Even though we have looked at pictures and talked all about them, Toby blank stared at them for the first day and a half. We then moved to blank stare with a head nod. By day 3 he was talking to them and by the time they left he was hugging them. Since life is messy and I am scattered we do not have one single picture to show for our time together. Good job mom!
These past two months have been amazing. All of the kids have grown so much and truly enjoy each other which makes our hearts swell. I have learned that I can get frustrated faster than I ever thought possible yet children do too and together we have learned forgiveness is a beautiful thing. Our beautiful moments have been things like three generation bike rides, baking and icing cookies with grandma, movie nights all snuggled on the couch, hikes at line creek, countless scooter races, volleyball lessons, family dinners and my favorites: hugs, kisses, cuddles and expressions of love. ❤️❤️❤️
But, life is always perfect. And if you know me, you know I like to laugh. And we certainly have had some funny moments also. Poor Toby is learning SO much but sometimes you just have to laugh at things. There isn't anything else you can do.
Travis rode the bus home last week (for the second time since Toby came home). As we waited outside, the UPS guy came to deliver a package. Toby thought it was a different bus and thought Travis was inside. I tried to explain it but as the UPS driver walked back to the truck Toby was yelling for Travis. Thankfully, the (real) bus pulled up and out came Travis. That sweet UPS man has waved as us forever but left our driveway thinking we were nuts and couldn't drive away faster.
Toby kept talking about seeing the sleeping deer. He was SO excited (he loves animals). It wasn't until the next day we realized it is a dead deer on the side of the road. Today (day 3), he said "Deer really sleepy". I just don't have the heart to tell him.
(This is not for the faint of heart but might explain things if you see us in the next few weeks). Background is that Toby has not had the blessing of clean water so has had parasites and bowel issues. Which means he basically never farted without being on the toilet. If he did he would have an accident and he was terribly embarrassed. We realized this when he came home. If he said he needed to go...he meant it! So...the first time Travis farted in the house.....Toby laughed like crazy. Now that Toby is felling better, of course he has learned to fart. And loves it! This mama is trying really hard to teach him where and when but today in the check out line he farted really loud and was SO proud of himself. He cheered and giggled while the poor check out clerk had no idea what to do. In less than 60 seconds I went from totally embarrassed to laughing along with him. ((Sigh))
A popular phrase he came home saying was 'shake your booty'. It is not a thing we run around saying in our house but he clearly loves it and nothing I do or say can seem to stop him. He had not said it in a long time until this week. We were in Walmart when a young black woman was walking around passing out candy. She came up to him and asked if he wanted candy. (((Blank stare))) She politely smiled and as she turned to walk away Toby yelled (yes yelled) "Shake your booty". If only you could have seen the look she gave me as she basically ran away.
Toby is full of sweet endearments and tells me (all of us actually) that he loves us a thousand times a day. It is so sweet...until you realize he also loves the trash can, a bath, farts, bugs, poo, and cookies. It kind of takes the meaning out of the words.
Speaking of bugs.....the kids were playing in the backyard/woods while I was working on the patio. Toby ran up to show me something and was full of excitement. I bent down to see and found a huge bug in between his fingers. Without thought, I screamed. Which made him jump and lose the bug. It took me a long time to explain that some people like bugs and others do not. Just because Ashley will catch and hold anything does NOT mean mommy will.
When we picked up Travis yesterday he quickly showed us he lost a tooth while at school. He was so proud. He was trying to sweetly explain to Toby that he will lose teeth and then get new ones. Toby started shaking his head, holding his teeth and saying "Toby's teeth no go bye bye". We avoided tears but Toby touched his teeth the whole way home until it was forgotten with riding the scooter. Oh the things that are hard to explain.
Well, that's us. Keeping it real with the amazing and messy parts of life. Always loving the support we have received from family and friends. Praying we all remain thankful for our blessings as we enter into this Christmas season. I don't know about you but I am sure we will have more messy and amazing stories to tell.
