Zach-isms

I am often amused by the quirky antics and larger than life personality of my 4 year old. Though his "more is better" philosophy of life frequently gets him in trouble (as in "more" noise, "more" bugging his sister, "more" of whatever he shouldn't be doing), he is always good for a laugh. Here are a few of his latest...

Today, while running around the living room:
"Mom, look at me! I'm a Olympics! I'm Olympicsing!".

A few days ago I found him working on an elaborate set of line drawings paired with pretend writing. When I asked him what it was he condescendingly replied,
"It's a video game instruction manual, of course".

While we were test driving a car, he said quite seriously,
"This is a sweet ride guys! This baby can really go!"
I honestly have no idea where he heard either of those expressions! I could not stop laughing.

Sweet Sadness

Talking about Noelle's birth mom is nothing new for us. We pray for her nearly every night. I've told and retold the story of all that we know and guessed at what we don't.

Questions remain.

What did she look like? Why did she leave me? Will I ever see her again?

Wishing I had the answers I hug and pray and say,
"She must have been beautiful because you are."
"She must miss you every day, I would."
"We may never know who she is and it's okay to feel sad."

A few nights ago watching pairs figure skating. Noelle runs to me, jumps in my lap, hiding her sad face on my shoulder.

"Mommy, does my birth mom look like her? I miss her, I'm sad."

Tears flow, both mine and hers. I'm sad but intensely grateful. This from the little girl who screamed and raged her feelings just a few short years ago. Now using words to express the pain. Now telling me without prompting, freely sharing her heart. To be her forever mom, to watch her grow up is the greatest privilege. I wish I could share this joy with the mom who gave her life.

Cardiologist Visit

Good news! Noelle's heart looked great on her echo Wednesday! There's some minor leakage around the valve but nothing to worry about. The stent looks fine too. As Noelle grows over the next few years she will need to go back to the cath lab to have her stent dilated. For now though, it's all good!
I'm so thankful for our strong and healthy girl. She's such a fighter!

Creativity—we must express

If you have never read Ann Voskamp's blog, Holy Experience, you really should. She is a poet, a life artist and she inspires me like no one has in a long, long time. Read this beautiful post to reawaken the artist within...

Book Review

I am excited to share that Calvary Boise Women's Ministry is featuring a book review written by yours truly! I felt so honored to have the opportunity to do this and I hope to write more! The book is Gods & Kings by Lynn Austin. I enjoyed reading it and loved the challenge of writing about it.
Check it out here: http://www.ccboisewomen.org/book_review-current.aspx

Year of the Tiger

We had a great time at the IFCA Lunar New Year celebration last night. There were lots of fun crafts, we ate yummy Panda Express food and watched an awesome martial
arts demonstration. We also enjoyed the lion dance (although the drums were really loud which set off some of Noelle's anxiety and sensory issues) and the kids popped bubble wrap (aka firecrackers) during the dragon parade. They were absolutely worn out today! We decided to stay home to recuperate especially since they are still getting over a cold.

Happy Chinese New Year! Xīn nián kuài lè!