Okay, okay, okay...I wouldn't necessarily call myself old (I'm still 29 for 4 more weeks, but who's counting?), but I do have a TON of kids. Five, to be exact...all under the age of 7 (but who's counting?).
So many of you have been following our adoption story. You've prayed for us, cried for us, and rejoiced with us. I wish I could hug each and every one of you and personally thank you for standing with us through this battle.
But I can't.
It's mainly because I've been in hiding these past 3 weeks...which hopefully will also explain my lack of updates of Facebook. I've pretty much been on lockdown since we got home. We've had a few family members come visit and meet the new additions. I've shown my face at carpool line and a few soccer games. And I did venture out to church this past weekend...with my nursery beeper in my tightly gripped hand the entire service.
Mainly, I'm just tired. The words "jet lag" seem far too sweet to describe the fatigue and exhaustion I experienced upon arriving home. And it didn't go away for a solid week. Actually, I'm still exhausted. But I think my only excuse now is that I have 5 children. I've resigned myself to the fact that I will be doing laundry every day for the rest of my life.
James and Jolie have fit right in with our family. Immediately. Thanks to the modern miracle of Skype, they knew exactly who Ava, Greta, and Harper were. They knew who their grandparents were. They, of course, knew who their Daddy was.
They slept 11 straight hours in their own beds their first night here, and have done so every night since then. They take great naps in the afternoon. They eat like little champs. They're happy all the time. They love their toys. They love their sisters. They love each other. They love their beds. They love life.
I understand that this is all probably just a "honeymoon" period. But after the literal hell I went through in Uganda to bring these kids home, I am loving every minute of this little honeymoon.
I would love to sit here and write about all of the wonderful little moments we've had with these precious children in the past few weeks, but I would be here forever. So, instead, I'll just share a ton of pictures and you can see for yourself...
Here are a few pics from our plane ride over from Africa. These 2 babies slept our entire first leg from Entebbe to Dubai.
James loved eating on the plane. I think they gave him enough bread.
He LOVED watching movies on the plane. Anything Pixar.
Monsters, Inc., Finding Nemo, and Cars were his faves.
Our little (BIG) family reunited at the airport.
Can't even begin to describe how great this felt.
This is what the back of my car looks like from here on out...
Before we even went home from the airport, our first stop was Chick-Fil-A.
The indoctrination has begun.
With Hoss and CoCo!
Sweet sisters.
I have a new baby doll to dress-up. I kiss these sweet lips all day long.
My 5 little babes eating at our breakfast-nook table.
Trick-or-Treating! The littles had NO CLUE what was going on, but they LOVED riding around the neighborhood in the wagon! And my bigs took turns filling their buckets up with candy.
My little Jolie-girl dressed up as a cheerleader. I kiss these sweet lips all day long.
As if our 5 children weren't enough, our besties, the Brady's, brought over their 4 children.
Just to kick the circus up a notch.
(Jolie was OVER Halloween by this point. Hahaha.)
Our first outing to Stonebriar Mall...J and J had a blast on the carousel.
Jolie rode with CoCo!
This is what our mornings look like...3 little people piled on my couch
watching "Mickey Mouse Clubhouse".
Sad day at the pediatrician getting A LOT of shots. Sorry, babies.
As newly-minted citizens of the United States of America, they joined me in performing my God-given responsibility and we all ROCKED THE VOTE.
(They're all wearing "I Voted" stickers, but they're too small to see.)
We had a great time with Pops and GiGi! So glad they could come for a few days to visit!
One of the Knight kids' favorite things to do...ride the horses outside of
La Hacienda Ranch in Frisco.
I dreamed about this restaurant the entire time I was in Uganda.
I love their fajitas. Seriously.
But back to the kids...look at how happy my baby boy is!!! And my sweet Harper!!!
We're all together!!! YAY!!!
I hope you've enjoyed my digital photo album of the past few weeks of our lives. I've had so many people wanting to know how we've been doing since we got home. And the short answer is GREAT. God has been so faithful to our family. We have been blessed beyond measure. We are reaping the rewards of our labor. I know there will be many hard days ahead of us. But right now, these are sweet days. I wouldn't trade them or anything. Thank You, Jesus.
