Happy First Birthday!

Today is Tesfahun's first birthday! I think he had a really good day...he was spoiled and loved by his family and friends! I can't believe my little man is one year old. He has brought a lot of joy into our family and we love him very much.

Andrew picked out this present for Tesfahun. He loved it!!

Hope

My friend Beth has inspired me to be a better blogger, so I am going to make a commitment to post something at least 4 times a week, if not more. Thank you Beth!!

I have been thinking about names lately. My sister and sister-in-law are both pregnant and I have talked to them both about names for their baby. It is fun to think of names for a new baby.

We, of course, did not name Tesfahun that was a gift that his birth mother gave him. I love his name and it fits him perfectly. That being said, I often find myself hesitating when people ask me his name because I know what their reaction will be. It is often a look of shock and then some sort of comment about how hard his name is to pronounce. I often find myself stating that we also call him TJ and their response is usually "well that is easier to say". However, I am making a vow to not do that anymore. His name is Tesfahun! We love his name and I need to be a better advocate for my son. It a strong Ethiopian name.

His name means "you are my hope". Tesfa means "hope" and "hun" is the future. When I think of the meaning of his name, it gives me goosebumps. What an amazing meaning. I often heard President Obama use the word hope throughout his campaign. It is a word I often use when I think about my children. So, in honor of my son Tesfahun, here are my hopes for my children.

I hope they know how much I love them.
I hope they know that they make me very happy.
I hope they know how proud I am of them and how much I enjoy being their mother.
I hope they grow up to be kind, generous, and thoughtful adults.
I hope they have a strong faith and realize that God will always be with them.
I hope they find their passion in life.
I hope they are happy!!

What are your hopes for your children?

Bad Blogging Mama!

Wow!! It has been a long time since I posted something on this blog. It pretty much coincides with me going back to work. As it turns out having an 11 year old, an 8 year old, and an 11 month old is A LOT of work. My daughter tried out for the dance team at school and will be on the JV team starting this summer. She is also working towards her black belt in karate. My son is also in karate and he decided that he wants to learn how to ice skate. TJ pretty much demands my attention from the time I pick him up at 3:30 until I lay him down at 7:30. Plus he is crawling everywhere and really enjoys going through our cupboards and playing with the doors. He is not interested in any of his baby toys and pretty much thinks that I should either be holding him or sitting on the floor right next to him. If I do something else, like make supper, then he lets me know he is none to pleased and will crawl over to me, pull himself up to my leg, and say "mama" until I pick him up. I am pretty confident that he has attached well to me. It is a big relief but I am a little tired.

TJ has made so many gains since we brought him home in Sept. He says "mama", "dada", and"nana" (no). We think he has said puppy and bye bye as well. When we say "yeah!" he starts to clap and he is working on standing by himself. He is a fun little boy! He has even introduced us to his temper:)

I attached recent pictures of TJ and also a video of him crawling.

We Survived.....

our first week of daycare! I went back to work on Monday after a 16 week leave of absence. Tesfahun appears to love it. His daycare mom said that "we have an awesome little blessing and that he is a delight to care for". He is such a happy boy when I drop him off and when I pick him up. I think he is really enjoying being around other kids and being entertained by them. He is also happy all night long when we get home. In addition, he is doing pretty well at night time...only waking up once or not even at all. It is a huge relief. I really enjoy teaching, so I am very happy that Tesfahun is doing so well at daycare. I often tell my children that I wanted to be a teacher and a mother when I was growing up and I feel so blessed that I am able to do both!

I also attached a picture from Christmas. Tesfahun was mostly interested in trying to eat the wrapping paper!!

We had our adoption hearing this morning. It was very quick and at the most it may have lasted 10 minutes, including taking pictures. It was the final step. We just have to get some additional documents but besides that we are done!

Tesfahun is doing great. He is finally sleeping through the night but I still find myself waking up several times a night. I have been waking up at night for almost 4 months now, so I think I just need to get my body back on track. I actually find myself missing him at night.

He is als0 working very hard at crawling. He is able to get himself on all fours but still can't figure out how to get his hands and legs to work together.

I am now down to my last two weeks of my leave. I am trying to staying positive but I will miss him very much. I have had a great time at home but knew when we started our adoption journey that I would need to go back to work. Luckily, I love teaching!

We are looking forward to Christmas break. My husband will be taking the next two weeks off from work. I can't wait to spend time with my family!

He can stand!

Tesfahun is standing. He leans a little bit on the couch but is working hard to get his balance. Tesfahun and I have been talking about the importance of crawling and that he will need to crawl before he walk. I am pretty sure that he does not really care and just wants to get moving but the teacher in me does kind of care:)

My husband and I had our last meeting with our adoption social worker today. For the most part, everything is going really well. He still does not sleep at night (the little stinker). He is also pretty attached to me and thinks that he should cry when dad is holding him. We are working on this since his dad needs to be able to comfort him as well.

It is hard to believe that a little over two years we started the adoption process and now we are almost done. We just need to get through court in the US, get his passport, social security number, and certificate of citizenship and then we are done. The sad part is that these last few steps make take another year. Oh-well at least we have him now.

I am thankful.....

I am thankful...

that I live in America. It is truely a blessing and I did not realize how much of a blessing it was until I traveled to Ethiopia.

that I have a husband who loves me and supports me.

that I get to be a mother to three awesome children

that I have be able to stay home for 16 weeks

that I have a job to go back to....when I start feeling sad about going back to work, I focus on the fact that I am fortunate enough to have a job.....plus I do love teaching (I just love being a mom more:)

that I have friends that laugh with me...what could be better really

that I have great parents who are always there for me