where does the time go?

Just like everything else in life, there are seasons we go through in our blogging, or at least I do.  It seems there are seasons that I am able to keep the blog updated weekly and then others when there are still just as many things to blog about, but I struggle to get anything posted.  So, you know how it goes, you get behind and then it is overwhelming to think about how to get caught up, so you put it off……….that is where I am currently…….overwhelmed.  I am overwhelmed with the pictures and what order they happened, with thoughts I want to share, with foster parenting things, changes in our life and the seasons we are in as a family and me as an individual.  Just expressing my thoughts about being overwhelmed is overwhelming me a bit 🙂  For all of you that keep up with our family through this blog, I apologize for getting so behind and thank you for not giving up completely.  You may or may not know that we started the journey to become foster parents last Sept. and completed our foster parenting classes, got cpr/first aid certified, had a home study done and became an “open home” for fostering and/or adopting in the state of AR, through The C.A.L.L., by Feb of this year.  Our home becoming officially open and our family receiving our first foster child happened at the same time.  I have had many thoughts and emotions since we picked up our sweet baby, both about having her and experiencing this new chapter in our lives. I  hope to one day share some of that with you all, but it’s just not the right time.  However, if anyone would like to know more about The C.A.L.L. or fostering, please let me know, I would love to talk to you about it by email or phone or something.  That has obviously been a big part of our day to day lives in the past couple of months, but there have been many other things.  Eli seems to be saying some of the funniest things.  Example: one afternoon while Eli was still napping, Nathan decided to go to Sonic for happy hour and get us all treats.  Eli woke up while he was still out and when he asked for a treat I told him about how daddy was getting us Sonic and would be home any minute.  His eyes got big and he gasp and said “Really?! You really know it’s true, Mommy?!! O, thank you!” I don’t know that blogging about this is really letting you fully appreciate how sincerely excited and surprised he was, but I tried.  Oh, and then yesterday we were meeting some one in the parking lot of a gas station.  We were a few minutes early so we parked to wait.  We had parked next to a shaved ice stand.  Eli took one look at it and declared in a very excited voice “Hey, that signs says there are treats here!!!”  obviously he couldn’t read the words, but the pictures were all he needed to know what it was all about.  Sadly for him is was cold and rainy and the stand was closed, so we did not get any treats 😦

My brain is failing to recall all the funnies that I tried to mentally mark in my memory as blog material,what a minute……..one more is coming to mind as I type.  Last weekend I loaded up the kiddos and we headed to NWA to visit my brother and his family.  It was a quick trip, but fun and well worth it.  So my brother’s youngest child is between Lucy and Eli in age.  He is really having a hard time with sharing right now, which really what toddler isn’t?!, but he is in the “i see you playing with one of my toys and you need to know that it is mine, so let me relieve you of that toy and declare it mine even though I don’t want to play with it myself”  stage.  Again, what toddler isn’t in that stage.  So, there are a few tiffs throughout our visit.  As we were leaving their house Sat evening I was telling Eli to say bye and thank you, etc.. to each family member.  When he got to his youngest cousin I told him to say bye and thank him for sharing his toys and playing with us.  Eli starts with “Bye Drew.  See ya later.  Tha……..um, thanks for…….um” then he turns to me and says with a look of confusion “but Mommy, he didn’t share his toys”  He was dead serious.  I reminded him that we all struggle with sharing and it can be hard, but we did play with his toys so we should thank him.   Eli is all boy, full of energy, but he has a really sweet side that just melts my heart.