adoption
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new mom.
It’s fascinating to compare the new-mom-me of right now with the new-mom-me of my biological children. No, I did not birth Gabriel and Noah. They aren’t even babies. But here I am, with my new-mom tunnel vision. Every waking moment is filled with meeting the needs of our four children, and then when they are asleep David and I start the problem-solving. About eating habits, bedtime routine, temper tantrums, discipline, sibling bonding and rivalry, attaching. Our conversations come in bits and pieces and are intense. “What should we do about ____?” I send out texts or snatches of emails to our adoption specialist or my friends who have adopted, wanting…
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day 7.
Hello friends! We made it through the first week! Thank you so, so much for the emails and texts. Every one of them has encouraged me, and I am sorry I’m responding via blog post for now. But I am responding! A minor miracle! There have been highs and lows in our household over the past 7 days (a low included me standing out on the front porch sobbing when my parents drove up to meet the boys), but on the whole I’m here to report that we’re doing well. We were shocked and delighted to discover that Gabriel and Noah sleep through the night! I feel like we can…
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our adoption story.
I’m sitting here, taking a deep breath, still trying to process what happened these last two weeks, trying to wrap my mind around how a life can change in an instant. Everything is different now. David and I heard about two brothers, ages 3 and 2, through our adoption agency on Wednesday, April 8th. We received very little information but both immediately knew we wanted to be considered as an adoptive family. I won’t lie, some panic and sleepless nights ensued. This was very, very unexpected for us! As you know we’d been thinking “baby.” We were on the Infant Adoption track with Bethany Christian Services. We had a nursery…
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saturday.
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new additions.
Dear friends, today we welcomed home the newest members of the Gentino family: brothers Gabriel (3) and Noah (2). We could not be happier! More soon, I promise!
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living in my story.
Last night brought a cold snap right in the middle of spring, so though there are new buds on the trees outside my window and a thick coating of pollen on the ground, I’m wearing jeans and a sweatshirt. For a little while at least. And I’m gazing anxiously out at the little tomato and pepper seedlings that went in the ground just last weekend, hoping they weather the cold. I know it’s early still. But we were impatient to get our garden planted again. It’s no secret I’ve struggled these last months waiting for our baby. We started the adoption process one year ago, so in a way it…
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tuesday gratitude.
149. a road trip (all by myself! to orlando!) last week 150. my cousin Evie’s new baby, Aria Grace 151. the best chicken curry I’ve tasted, made by Allison 152. a dark & stormy each evening 153. ladies’ lunch at the Dandelion Cafe 154. hot Florida weather 155. missing my husband and kiddos 156. phone chat with B 157. Streams in the Desert (I love this devotional already) 158. Judah is begging to read more of his first Magic Tree House book 159. getting (slowly, painfully) back into shape 160. new buds on the trees 161. ’tis the season for afternoon iced coffee 162. our friend Chuck installed as pastor…
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books are comfort.
Hello there friends, I’m sorry for my lack of posts of late. In truth, my words feel all dried up. I’ve never felt like this before. I sit at the computer and pull up a Word document (where most of my blogging starts out) and stare at the screen and . . . nothing. Maybe I just downright said everything I could possibly have to say during my October writing challenge. Or maybe it has something to do with this strange season of life we’re in, this waiting season, which I feel as though I’ve referenced here way too many times. I feel like I’ve become kind of a downer…
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wednesday gratitude.
133. Brazilian coffee, good food, and laughter at a friend’s birthday party last night 134. the quiet peace of an afternoon to myself 135. I don’t have to spent it cleaning my house because Sandy is coming to clean next week 136. the sun is shining today even if the wind is biting 137. Amie sings the Gloria Patri all throughout the day, thanks to our church worship album 138. reading the Mitford series. again. 139. our new homeschool co-op which the kids call “nature school” 140. Judah’s reading improves every day, he’s beginning to read to himself for fun 141. friends who help carry burdens 142. Gilmore Girls season…
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a little tour of the baby’s room.
Happy February! I know I’ve posted some photos of the baby’s room here and there, but I thought I’d do a full tour while my house is sparkling clean. But first, a before shot: For most of our first year, this was our master bedroom. But as you can see we didn’t do much to make it homey. After we started the adoption process, David and I decided to move into the more spacious third bedroom and turn this into the baby’s room. And so that’s what we did! We liked the neutral paint color (which was all throughout the house when we bought it), and my splurge for this…