Never fear- I am still alive!!!

Let me see- where do I begin? This last week and a half have been absolutely crazy. Non stop, on the run, ups and downs- just plain old crazy. So much has been happening with our adoption of the fabulous five. I wish I could share more details, but because my blog is now public and because our kiddo's are foster children there is just so much that I cannot put on here in order to protect their privacy. Unfortunately,this includes their pictures- which is so hard for me because can I just tell you they are absolutely beautiful! All five of them- simply precious. So, you will just have to take my word for it for not that's all. :0)
So last Wednesday my awesome friend Kellie ( You are THE BEST KELLIE- THANK YOU!!) came and took care of our five school aged kiddo's while Todd and I loaded up the car, along with Aleigha and Kaden, and traveled about 4 hours away to meet the fabulous five. While we were gone for 2 nights in a hotel my INCREDIBLE church family came and painted 3 bedrooms (we are playing musical bedrooms at our house) and put together the new bunk beds. Now that I will show you pictures of just as soon as I take some and download them...but for now, once again you will have to trust me- it looks FABULOUS. There are just no words to explain how blessed Todd and I feel to be surrounded by such amazing friends. Thank you all from the bottom of our hearts- you have no idea how grateful we are for your help. We love you all.
Thursday morning we got to meet all five of our new kiddo's. They are in 3 separate foster homes so a lot had to be arranged. We went armed with teddy bears and lollipops to help break the ice. Jayla and Lainey were both very outgoing- came right to us. Kai and Jace however kept a safe distance and took some time to warm up to us. Baby Isabella went right into my arms and acted like she had known us her entire life. She never cried once. Not once. Unbelievable. We spent some time together at the girls foster families home and then were able to take them back to the hotel with us for an overnight. Bless their hearts- I cannot image how scared they must have been with complete strangers who called themselves mommy and daddy. We came in, took them from their home, loaded them into our vehicle and took them to a new place and they had no choice but to go with us. I kept telling them how brave they were and how proud I was of them. I told them it was okay to be sad or afraid- that it was okay to feel any way they wanted to feel. We hugged and talked, laughed and cried, and got to know these precious children who would soon be ours forever.
In a perfect world none of this would happen... in a perfect world adoption would not exist. While I know Todd and I are blessed to get to raise these amazingly brave, beautiful children- my heart cannot help but to ache for all they have been through- the changes, the unknowns, and the loss. I pray that the Lord gives me what it takes to be the best mommy I can to these children. I pray I have what it takes to help heal their hearts and restore their faith. I pray that one day they will realize how God himself led us to them... how all along, even in the darkest hours He was watching over them... How all along He had a plan for their lives... I am just so thankful it involved me. :0)