My boys are pretty cool

I rarely talk about my boys here on this adoption themed blog.  But I think it is important to occasionally mention the kids that I am parenting.  The boys who are my entire world.  They consume 90% of my time and attention and to be quite honest, I think they are each pretty great kids.

My oldest just started his EMT classes at our local community college.  He seems to love the classes.  I know it is much easier to engage in classes when you can see the real life application.  I hope this is the beginning of a career path for him. 

Originally he wanted to be a paramedic, but lately has changed to criminal justice with the idea of being a police officer.  I think he is too tenderhearted to be a cop, but maybe that will be an asset to him.  I'm not too worried about it since his career ideas change from month to month. 

He also went on a mission trip this summer and came back and was convinced he was going into full time ministry.  I believe that there is plenty of time for him to really figure out what he wants to do.  He is an 18 year old boy.  I figure he will flail around for a few more years before he grows up.  Please Dear Lord, help me live with his lazy ways until that happens!

J and his friends in the Bahamas for their mission trip.  Must have been a church day since they are all dressed up.

J and a girl he met in the Bahamas when he was running VBS for kids there.

Here is a picture of J with one of his best friends.  They have gone to church together for about 15 years.  I hope they have a lifetime friendship.  She is a great girl!

Now my middle boy, sweet LanMan.  He had hernia surgery about a month ago and he is healing very well.  However, that means he can't play fall sports.  While it could have been tragedy for a child who is a sports superstar, it wasn't. He is loving the down time he now has in the evenings.  I am also happy to report that his adjustment to middle school has been fabulous.  He loves it and is ready to head to school every morning.  Which is an answer to prayer considering how last year started.

LanMan and our new puppy Grizzly



LanMan before hernia surgery



LanMan doing his favorite thing - fishing.

That leaves my adorable little D.  He is the one child that demands 90% of my parenting energy.  And yet he is the child who has the most life in him.  He lives life without limits.  Which will make him a great adult.  If we can just get him there.  He is small for his age, but cuter than cute.  He is a natural born leader.  He is 10 going on 17.  And if you were to watch him in action with the ladies, you would find he is often working the 14-16 year old girls crowd at any event we attend.  He definitely has mojo and knows how to use it.  Evidenced by the middle school cheerleader loving on him at a Jr Football game.  :Sigh:  Love that kid.  But he wears me out!

D getting a little cheerleader lovin'

First day of 5th grade - marching to the beat of his own drummer

D being the cool kid on the first day of class

Yes, my days are filled with fun and excitement.  And unlike how it comes across here on my blog, I don't miss out on the joy of parenting the boys (most of the time).  They demand my attention, and that's not a bad thing.

Love these kiddos!

Summer is tough on mommy

L pitching

I am uploading a huge artwork file to my billboard company so I have a minute to spare before I have to head out to D's baseball game.

Man is this a busy time of year for the mother of boys.

L and D both play baseball.  Lots and lots of it.  Every night we have a game or practice.  That alone is exhausting.

Both boys bowl on a league.  I shuttle them back and forth to the bowling alley on my lunch hour.

D has started football workouts and skills camp.   This is mornings and evenings.

L will start middle school basketball camps next week.

J is working at our local water park as a lifeguard. When he is not working he simply eats me out of house and home.  And oh yeah, he brought home a guinea pig last week that is 'our' new pet.  Before I went to bed last night, I was cutting matted hair from the new friend's backside.  Yes, it is a long haired critter of all things.

Work is over the top busy.  I work in the recreation field and as one would guess, summer is crazy busy season.  As I type this I have been at my desk for almost 10 hours today.

I am the director of operations for a college baseball team that plays about 50 games throughout a two month period.  Thank heavens I have a very capable intern helping this year.  Otherwise I would be certifiably crazy.

We eat meals in the car.  Sometimes meals include chips and salsa, Popsicles and Gatorade.

My house has not been vacuumed in two weeks.

I do keep up with the laundry, simply because I am constantly washing uniforms. And wet towels.  So many wet towels.

The Princess baby has to run around with us all weekend long as we go to tournaments, run errands, attend bday parties and spend time at church.

D qualified for Hershey Track and Field State Games in all 3 events he participated in.  That will take us out of town next weekend for two days. 

Just typing all of this makes me tired.

But I am off to the ball field.  In high heel sandals and dress clothes.  Running late - of course.

At least I will be able to sit in a chair and watch the game.  That will be my one hour of rest.

Just when you think they have grown up

I am home from work today because my newly graduated 'adult' son is sick.  So sick that he didn't want to be home alone.  There is something very lonely about puking (or dry heaving in his case), without someone around to make sure you don't die.

It is kind of nice knowing that your child still needs you, even if it is just when they are sick.

Now I get to look forward to sharing this nasty virus to the rest of my kids.  Could be a really long week.  Let's hope mommy's flu shot works and I can stay strong.

Being a parent is not for the weak of heart - or stomach in this case.

Big weekend

It was graduation weekend.  But in true Lisa fashion, we can't just have graduation, we have to add all kinds of other complicating factors.

Saturday morning I got my little Princess from her momma at 7am.  That began the fun of the day.  Princess and I ran some errands for a couple of hours. 

Then we went to my sister's house and picked up her two little girls so they could go with us to my oldest son's high school graduation party.  My nieces are 10 and 4 and positively adorable. 

So this momma who is not raising any girls, had a car full of them headed to J's graduation party, being hosted by his dad.  Because my other two boys were in a baseball tournament, they weren't with me and didn't get to participate in the graduation festivities of the day. It was just Lisa and the girls.

J's party went great.  His dad and step mom were gracious hosts welcoming all of my family as they came to wish my son well.

After the party, I took all three of the girls shopping at the Goodwill store down the street.  We spent TWO hours there trying on clothes!  Imagine having a 5 month old baby, 4 and 10 year old girls.  It was quite the adventure.

We each walked out with a bag full of clothes and big smiles (except for the baby, and she was asleep by then).

I dropped the girls off with their dad and the Princess baby with her momma who had gotten off work early.

J met me at a friend's house (where they were also having a graduation party), and he and I decided to go out to dinner, just mom and son, to celebrate his graduation accomplishment.  He chose the local hibachi grill and we had the typical hibachi experience.

The next morning Princess was dropped off at 6am so the fun could begin again.  I was so thankful that she fell asleep in my arm and we were able to take a one hour nap before she woke back up at 7:30am.  I needed the sleep!

Then we were off to my grandson's baptism in a Catholic church in a rural community where my daughter lives, about 40 minutes from us.

I will have to say, two days of carrying a baby in a car seat while wearing 4" heels was more than I could stand!

We watched the baptism ceremony (not being Catholic myself, it was interesting to see how the ceremony is done and what the belief is behind child baptism).

While I snapped pictures, my youngest son D held the Princess.  It was a huge help.

The ceremony was really special because there were two babies being baptized that day, and they are cousins.  A neat memory for two little ones who will grow up together.

I was also so glad to see what a great daddy my daughter's fiance is.  (They will be getting married in November.)  That baby loves his daddy and that daddy loves his baby.  So cool to see a young man who takes being a father seriously.

Aren't they the cutest little family?!?

The we were off again to head to the actual graduation ceremony for J.  This included another 40 minute drive across town.  If Princess would have been sleeping this would have been an easy trip.  But she didn't sleep, and she wanted to eat NOW.

So we took a detour, stopped at a Golden Corral where my youngest son thought he was in heaven because all of his favorite foods were at his fingertips in any quantity he wanted to eat.

I, on the other hand, tried to make a plate while walking and eating with a child in my arm.  It is amazing how that skill came back to me even when it has been 10 years since I carried around an infant regularly.

Lunch was done, baby was fed, diaper changed and we were off.

We made it to J's town in time to watch the traditional march that the graduates make through the town to the school.  I had never seen anything like that.  The students were hot and tired by the time they got there, but it is a cool memory that they will have of the annual graduation tradition from their community.  We snapped a picture of J as he walked by.

Got to the school and navigated all the stairs down to the gym floor where J's dad had saved us a seat.  Have I mentioned how hard it is to walk in heels and carry a baby in a car seat?  It was KILLER!

The ceremony was great.  They had 18 valedictorians.  Apparently all of them were 4.0 students.  Quite a deal.  My youngest son D made it clear to me that he will NEVER be on the stage if you have to get straight A's all through high school.  Apparently he doesn't even have any aspirations of being an academic overachiever!

I did make J stop and take a picture with his momma.  Doesn't he look delighted?!? (Notice the white shirt, got it at Goodwill the day before.  I love it!)

Once the ceremony was over, D, the Princess and I headed back to our home another 40 minutes away.  Once again Princess had enough of the car rides and fussed on the way home.  We were all just worn out.

We got back to our house and Princess's mom called and said she was on her way, she had gotten off work early.  It was a good deal for all of us.

So with Princess gone for the day, D and I went to get his haircut to correct the haircut his dad had given him the night before.  D told me he wasn't going to school until he got it fixed, so it was a non-negotiable task we had to get out of the way.

Then it was off to the BF's house for a quick visit, and now I am back at home thinking my bed is calling my name.

To think, I have a Monday waiting for me tomorrow when I wake up.  Yuck. 

Congrats to my new high school graduate.  I am so proud of you and how you are growing up!

Prom Pictures

I forgot to post these last week.  My first child at his last prom.  I will be the mother of a high school graduate in just a couple of weeks.  WOW!

It's Friday!

I don't like pulling up my blog and seeing the ugly words from the last post, so I am on a mission to move them down the list and start filling my blog with a few more happy thoughts.

So here is mine for this morning.  I work at a recreation center and today we are hosting a Special Olympics basketball tournament.

There is no greater joy than watching these teams play.  OK, maybe a little mommy joy too, my oldest son J is volunteering as an official - and he LOVES it!  He got up early this morning and it was the first thing he talked about and he was out the door in record time so he could make sure he wasn't late.  **love that**

Everyone should get to come to work and see this level of joy first thing in the morning.  I think the roof on this building might just blow off from all of the excitement from the players. 

I want to live with that kind of joy.  Today is the best day ever for every one of them.  Until tomorrow, when that could be the best day ever too. :)

Maybe I'll get some pictures later to share.

My oldest child is now an adult

Yesterday was J's 18th birthday.  While he is officially an adult by legal terms, I think it will be a few years before he actually reaches adult maturity.  But when I met his father (who was 22 at the time), he was also just starting to grow up, so I know there is hope for J too.

Hard to think that in the past year I had a baby, became a step-grandma, and had a child turn 18.  I am working my way through seasons of life at a record pace.

So here's to life changes, and coping with curve balls.  And enjoying where I am today.  Even if I wouldn't have chosen it given the chance.

Life is funny. 

Happy birthday J!  Hope you enjoyed those crab legs.