Three's Company!

Three is definitely company where the ill and afflicted are concerned around our home. After picking Colin up from school today, he was giving me the usual rundown on the day's activities at school. He ended with this, "So, mom, I am not sure exactly how to tell you this but I didn't do so well on my test today. You see, it is like when I turn my head, it really hurts and...." He could have stopped talking the minute he mentioned not doing well on his test. For Colin, this is out of the norm. Once home, we took his temp, which of course was well on its way over 100. Colin then started begging me for my concoction of "bug juice" so that he could get well quick and go to school tomorrow. He was given the special juice, a mixture of grape Gatorade and Sprite, but there will be no school for him tomorrow. So onto Pryce. Pryce did well today, no fever, Tylenol only in the AM. I left for a moment this afternoon for a quick run to the store. While in the store I ran into both of Pryce's school teachers. I smiled and told them how I thought he was all well, hoping to return tomorrow. I came home, Pryce is curled up in a chair, of course, with fever! I am now throwing in the towel....we will just try again next week!

"Mate"

Well, when one is sick, two shall be sick, it only makes sense, right? One would think that Pryce has had his share of illness but that is not to be the case. After preaching to both boys about the importance of hand sanitizer use AND washing their hands at school, Pryce came home yesterday with a fever, 103.5 to be exact. Of course I had jokingly stated to the dr. last week that we would see him again in a few days with one of the boys....it was a JOKE that suddenly became reality today. While we waited in a room to be seen, Pryce and I were just chatting. The chat somehow turned into a discussion about how one particular little girl in his class always yells to him, "Hey Pryce, I know who your girlfriend is!"...Pryce does not like this one bit. I asked him how he responds when she says this. He told me that sometimes he walks away, other times he just simply says he doesn't have a girlfriend. Then he said, "Mom, I just don't tell her about Keaton". I said that was fair. In reality there are two little girls in Pryce's life, one is a precious little girl, Keaton and the other is another precious little girl and longtime friend, Julia. So I asked him about Julia. Without hesitation, he said "oh, Julia, she is my mate." I was somewhat interested in what being a "mate" entailed so I dared to ask "Pryce, what is a mate?" He said, "you know, it is part girlfriend and part friend".....of course, I should have known.

Cleft Healing Home

Below is a link you can click on to watch a video from an organization called Love Without Boundaries. This organization helps thousands of "special needs" children in China each year. This particular video clip is from their Cleft Healing Home. It features cleft affected children and shows you the triumphs that they must overcome just to be adoptable.

http://www.youtube. com/watch? v=BGTUFqrLXs0&feature=channel_ page

"Waiting Children"

This post is for anyone out there in "blogger world" who may be considering a "special needs" or "waiting" child. I often try to come up with the words to encourage people to go the special needs route in adoption and I find myself at a loss of how to say what I want to say. I have been following a blog, http://www.cupcakesandhairbows.blogspot.com/, and their post today, titled "Answered Prayers", really sums up what I would like to tell others about a special needs adoption. The post speaks specifically about parents taking a chance on these children....we have found that to be so true with our little Mason-Kate. I remember when we were not open to taking that "chance", we specifically stated that we wanted a child that was deamed to be healthy. We got that alright, and more....Mason-Kate is healthy, happy, energetic, loving, hilarious, etc., etc., etc. Her "special need" turns out not to be so "special" after all.

Sunshine!

After a few dreary days both literally and physically (for MK), the sun is finally beginning to shine again! Mason-Kate is doing much better and we are all enjoying our last official day of winter vacation with the boys. It has been so nice to just be home with everyone. Colin has spent the last week teaching himself to play a Beethoven song on the piano - only, there isn't any music to read, he has done this by what he has heard on a Charlie Brown episode. Amazing! Pryce has been steady playing his new DS, putting puzzles together and asking us when we can play Apples to Apples again - we have played at every meal since we got the game. Mason-Kate is currently fascinated by this fridge phonics game that we have - it consists of letters and the idea is to make three letter words, it says the sounds and if you make a word, it says the word. The other day we noticed that MK had the letters C-E-O listed as her three letter word....that made us laugh as she really can act as the CEO at times. Today she decided to take it a step further. Each letter is a different color. MK took the bag of letters into our living room and proceeded to sort the letters by color. This is something that Colin would have done at this age, and it is very interesting to me just how alike those two are in personality. Different but all too similar. She also did some modeling for us today with her new purple "neguc" on. She made me laugh. She got everything on and then she looked at me and said ,"Now"....I say that all the time when I have finally finished one task and I am getting ready to move on to another.

Looking pretty with the new jewels on.

"Now, if I can just stand up in these things..."

Fever, Hives and MORE....

In true Drafts fashion, we are welcoming in the new year, with a visit to the dr. MK has had a stuffy nose for awhile, not sure exactly how long, pretty normal really. Well, yesterday after her nap I thought she felt warm, fever 101. With the little medical knowledge that I have, I diagnosed her with an ear infection (although she repeatedly told me her ear did not hurt) or a sinus infection - either were a likely culprit to the fever. This morning arrives, fever still around, appointment made. About 30 minutes prior to our appt., MK was eating a peanut butter sandwich. I looked down and there are these huge welts all over her little hands. HMMMM. I got a little nervous. Then she started saying "owwww" and grabbing her legs, tights come off and wouldn't you know there are huge welts all over her legs....ouch. Off to the dr. we go, the minute he walks into our room I show him the welts, he gives her A LOT of Benadryl and examines her. Ears, fine. Nose, fine. Not sure why she has hives, give Benadryl. Chest....well, crackling in both lungs, upper and lower lobes, DOUBLE pnuemonia.....the shock on my face must have said it all because he immediately started saying "she is going to be fine, call me this weekend if she is worse, we will see her in two weeks for a recheck....she will be fine". I am still in shock. I had no idea she was so sick. She is such a good girl, though. She never cried, she said hello, she read the book to the dr (not really but she pointed out everything in the book and talked about the pictures with him), she gladly said goodbye and blew everyone kisses....she has come so far!

Happy New Year

I wish that I could honestly post that our family made it to midnight to welcome in 2009 but, alas, that did not occur. We were all in the game until around 10:30 when MK dove into her bed already half asleep. The rest of us fell asleep in our living room during the final hour of 2008. At 12:02AM, Pryce awoke us all asking when the big ball was going to drop....sadly, we were two minutes late. Our evening was filled with fun, though, as we had guests over for dinner, games and fireworks.

Today we have a "lazy day"....Ryan is completely occupied by preparing our New Year's dinner complete with black eyed peas and collard greens, he loves to do this so I just sit back and wish him luck. Of course, between cutting up greens and soaking peas, he is making ample time to watch football....big games today. The boys are being the boys....they constructed some of their Star Wars lego ships and have been firing shots at anything that moves. Mason-Kate, in full style, has spent the morning preparing for a battle herself. She loves, loves, loves to walk around with a sword in her pants and a shield at her side, amazing what the boys teach her without even trying.

And lastly, MK's little feet and hands....precious!

Happy New Year!