the highlight of our summer vacation.....

we swam with the rays......sting rays......at the aquarium....with lots of people watching...

IT WAS AMAZING!

they were so soft and graceful.

and really good kissers ;-)

i hadn't seen my love light up her face with her beautiful smile like that in a long time!

preparing to snorkle. what dorks!

but it sure was worth it!!!!!!!!

numbers

2 - the # of days till we leave for the beach

11 - the # of days laurie and i will be off work

8 - the # of days we will be at the beach

13 - the # of days till school starts

1 - the # of times the children will have returned to the same school as last year - only with us

429 - the # of days the children have been in our home

42 - the # of hours the children have seen their mom over the last year

13 - the # of psychological disorders the children have been diagnosed with

11 - the # of days till we find out the judge's plan

infinite - the # of prayers needed ensuring the children are placed in the safest, stablest place

today i am grateful because.......

1) i didn't actually lose my car key in walmart like i thought. it just fell into one of our shopping bags as i took my keys out of my bag while we walked to the car- of course we didn't realize it until AFTER we searched the store for a single missing key for 30 minutes. none the less it was a miracle!

2) i got to watch my two gorgeous children graduate from (their third!!!) summmer camp this afternoon. they were so proud not only of themselves, but to have someone there watching them with pride.

3) our trip to the beach is getting closer and closer. and we can not wait.

4) we have a home full of love, laughter, food, support, wisdom, learning, and puppy-love.

5) i re-realized today that to get (and keep) the positive energy flowing more freely, i must focus on the positive things in my life. stop dwelling aka worrying about the negatives.

6) august 20th marks my 9th anniversary with my wonderful soul mate. the yin to my yang. the light to my dark. the stabilty to my dreamer's mind. the one who completes me and makes me want to be a better me.

i am so blessed.

what saturday brings....

a visit.

in her new apartment.

to be continued......

court has been potsponed. and so has the official reunification of the sibling unit. i feel like all we do is wait. patience is a virtue, right?

fingers, toes, arms, and legs all crossed

in 7 days we will find out where the next fork in our path will take us.

on one side of the fork: it brings us closer to two sets of bunkbeds, 1 carseat, 2 booster seats, clothes in size 3t, 5, 8, and 12. lots of hugs, kisses, and sleepless nights. and a future of family vacations, 4 proms, 16 homecomings, 4 driver's ed classes, and 4 college tuitions.

the other side of the fork: brings us closer to being a family of two who happen to have a lot of dog "children".

my prayer is that they will be placed in the safest, most stable enviornment.

safety.

stability.

two things that are a constant for these four now. two things the four new nothing about 1 year 1 month and 11 days ago.

please God, let them have the life they deserve to live. please.

table for 6?

we've decided that if they don't return home, that we will adopt 4 out of 5 of the sibling set.

yes. you read it right - we will have gone from a family of 2 to a family of of 4 to a family of 6. almost overnight.

2 boys, 2 girls - ages 2 through 9.

even as i type this i can't believe this is the path we have taken. together.

together.

there are no words to describe the feeling i get when i hear her say "i have totally fallen in love with these kids".

i am the luckiest, most blessed girl in the world - i have found my "knight in shining armor" and together we are making both our dreams come true. i don't think i could ask for anything more.