Relief!

I've spent the last four nights cleaning sheets, clothing, and whatever else Sheridan managed to initiate with her vomiting and diarrhea. I was so tired after the second night that I fell asleep on the couch. Big mistake! Husbands just don't have the same instinct mothers do. Sheridan started vomiting and Kenneth must have slept through the sounds of her hurling until she cried out. Then I awoke to find a huge mess. Uggh! She vomited so much that when we told her we were going to give her a suppository, she said okay and didn't move. But all is better now because she went back to school today!

Honor Society Induction

Band Beauty

Cullen got her braces off after 4 years, and look at her smile!

Soccer Saturday

(I guess I should title every Saturday post as "Soccer Saturday" since that is what we do on most Saturdays.) Well, today we had three games. Skylar had a game at 8 AM and 2 PM, while Curran's was at noon. Skylar's first games was with his age appropriate team, and they smoked their opponents 9-0! Skylar scored 3 of those 9 points. Go Sky! Then Curran's game was next,and I thought the game might be a disaster after learning that Curran had been picked on at school by her two friends (They are also neighbors.) about how they were going to whip Curran's team. Curran was also nervous playing against several of her old teammates, but I tried to reassure her to just play her best, and "play her best" she did! Curran kicked a perfect corner kick in the game right to the center of the goal, but sadly her teammates didn't capitalize on it. Curran also had 3 shots on the goal that she missed, but she still looked and felt great eventhough one of her old teammates poked her in the eye... I guess justice was a 4-0 win! So, we pulled off a Wilgers shut out because Sky's U-10 team won also!

Big Surprise!

Cullen texts me today with some horribly spelled word that I'm trying to figure out. Well, see for yourself: "got in hourns". So, if you hadn't seen the picture, could you have guessed? I actually did, but I second-guessed myself because from the time I was in school until last year, if a child had made the honor society, the parents would have received a letter first with instructions to keep the information secret until the induction ceremony. Apparently, there is a new sponsor, and she changed the way it has been. Now after seeing what she texted me, maybe the election committee needs to re-evaluate! hahahaha! Congratulations Cullen!

Oh Crap!

Literally! You see, yesterday, I was home with my children working on homework, and Curran comes into the kitchen and exclaims, "What is all this water doing on the floor?" I replied, " That is probably where your sister was cleaning up Sheridan's mess with the popsicle." (Boy, was I wrong!) Curran says, "Mom, that's a lot of water." So I stop what I'm doing and walk around to the other side of the breakfast area, and stopped dead in my tracks! Oh crap! Literally! There was water (and crap) in the guest bathroom, the living room, and breakfast area. I didn't panic though and did know enough to turn off the water under the toilet. Oh my! All I could think of was where do I begin? Thank goodness for the wet vac and my wonderful mom that rushed right over to help me. Okay, so it's not over when the water is gone. I had to clean the tile floors with bleach water, and now we have not only a concrete floor in our master bedroom courtesy of Hurricane Ike, but now our living room carpet is a goner too! On the bright side, it rained, so we didn't have soccer which caused me to be at home and not away for several hours. Now that really would have been a mess!

Here's what my husband said when he came home...

Sheridan Update

So you think things have been quiet on the Wilgerses homefront? That's just because I haven't posted about what Sheridan has gotten into lately, but here's an update. We've had two episodes recently with Desitin. When I asked her what she was doing (in the first picture), she said, "I'm shaving like Daddy!" No, she hadn't found any razors... The second picture was the worst! Desitin was everywhere and it smells! I washed her hair 3 times, and it wouldn't come out, so I called a neighbor who is a hairdresser, and she said to try dish washing liquid. That did the trick, in case you ever find yourself in my shoes... lol!

So Fun!

Today did not start out well. Curran and Skylar both had soccer games-or so we thought-at the same time. I brought Curran to hers in Port Arthur, and just as I had parked, my cell phone rang:

Me: Hello.
Kenneth: Turn around.
Me: What?
Kenneth: The game was at 8 AM.
Me: Too late, but I guess we'll come watch Skylar now.

It seems that the schedule was changed, but we knew nothing of the sort. Our coach supposedly told the girls Thursday at practice. Curran says she wasn't told anything! Leave info like that to an 11 year-old? Are you kidding me!?! And to call at the time we were supposed to originally be at the field! When we didn't show at 8 AM, I would have thought about calling then! It's not like we have ever missed! This shouldn't happen in the days of email and cell phones... No, I wasn't happy! So, off we go again, but this time to Skylar's game in Beaumont against Spindletop which was his old team, so of course a win would change my spirits. However, when I had gotten to those fields, they were losing 3-0. Finally the boys stepped it up. Skylar even saved a goal that was just in the goal but not enough to cause a score. Our team pulled off a huge win! How's that for Spindletop's top training that you can't get anywhere around here! Congrats to our die hard coach, Katie Davis!

After a couple of hours rest, we loaded up the family and drove to Houston. We met at the Blue Nile restaurant with other families that have or will have adopted from Ethiopia. It was so much much fun, but a little wild. Ethiopians do not bring their young children out, so hopefully we didn't upset any that might have been dining at the same time. My only regret was not having enough time to really get to know everyone. All the children were absolutely beautiful! A big "thanks" goes to Debbie who coordinated this event and thanks to Blue Nile for having us! The food was the best! As you can see in the pictures, Skylar had Whataburger. He did try injera though...

Politics Stinks!

And I'm not just talking about the Presidential campaign! We deal with politics on a daily basis. It's in your neighborhood and school, and it's making me tired. So, what's a person to do? Turn to humor! I got this picture from a friend in an email, and I laughed so hard because it is so true. I also just had my septic tank cleaned...

Some Good News

Sometimes you have to look deep to see something good, and today Grace told me that Mamush's papers were ready! Yea! We could actually file for a court date; however, Maritu's are not. It seems there is some progress with hers though. Grace said we'd talk next week after she talks to Hope's Ethiopian workers, and I hope we'll know more then. Kenneth and I were hoping to travel once, even more so now that we have evacuated for two hurricanes! It's tough being self-employed... We will make the best of this situation... I really want them to come home!

Oops, I did it again!

...and it has nothing to do with Brittney Spears! I fell into a blog slump or maybe more like an adoption slump. At least the courts are now open again, so maybe I will have that desired court date I have been waiting so long for. In the meantime, I wanted to share a heartbreaking story from the Phillipson's who adopted through my agency, Hope Adoption Agency. I'm not sure of the details, but Carole and Marty brought home two vivacious boys about 5 weeks ago from Ethiopia. They are Paul who is 5ish, and Samuel who is 3ish. It seems that there was some kind of horrific tractor accident Saturday involving Samuel. He was life-flighted to an area hospital where he sustained many injuries. So far, he has lost one leg at the knee, and possibly part of the other leg. He has a fractured pelvis and a broken arm, along with many other injuries. He had one surgery, and I believe will have another today in attempt to repair an open fracture of his elbow. He is on a ventilator too. Obviously he is in critical condition and his family needs many prayers at this time. I can't even imagine how they are holding it together... Please pray for Samuel! I have posted a link to his hospital website on the right-hand side of my blog where their family gives updated information.

Life After Hurricane Ike

Where have I been? Well, Thursday we awoke to our local news stations saying that we were now under a mandatory evacuation for Hurricane Ike. I knew that was going to happen. All week the news stations had been reporting that the hurricane was going to hit around Corpus Christi or Brownsville, but if you watched the models on www.stormpulse.com , then you could tell that they were going to be wrong. I think the real reason was that our state spent a lot of money on evacuations for the last hurricane which didn't touch us, so this time we had very little time to prepare, just like Hurricane Rita in 2005.

So, we packed our necessities and headed back to Troup, Texas where we stayed until Sunday. Sunday, we decided that since we had no power where we were, we might as well take our generators and head home where we at least have breathing room. And so now we are just waiting for power, but until then, we use our generators to run the refrigerator, two small A/C units, and our water well.

My How Your Thinking Changes

when you have a "spirited" two-year-old. I decided last week that I would NOT wait until Sheridan is three to put her in school! Can you blame me? She was so bored at home with me. She already knows all her colors, shapes, some letters, and counts to 20. No wonder she can open "child-proof" locks, climbs cabinets (decorates them too!), gets sticks of butter and eats them, and applies Desitin to her face so she can "shave" like Daddy! You might think I'm exaggerating, and I wish I was! Therefore, I called North Star where Skylar went to school when he was 3, and what do you know, they had one opening! Hurray!!! So, today was her big day. She got out of the car this morning and said, "Let me walk, Mommy." She went right in and never looked back! When I picked her up, she told me everything she had done today. I suppose now I'm just making room for Maritu and Mamush...

What Do You Call a Little Boy in Ethiopia When You Don't Know His Name?

MAMUSH! or Mamo... We've been thinking of calling him "Mamo." I think it's a cool nickname.

At Peace

Lately, I've felt a strange sense of peace. I feel so confortable with my process of adoption, thus far, for Maritu and Mamush. I guess it helps having wonderful Hope families that have showered me with older pictures of Mamush, not to mention the new ones of Mamush and Maritu. I can't imagine having to go through the process like other agencies (i.e., Dove) without getting these weekly pictures and video. My heart goes out to all adopting families. Even with these things, it's hard just waiting for the courts to re-open.

Here comes....

...Hurricane Ike! The big question for the next few weeks is "Will we be evacuating again?" I guess time will tell.

Great news

My husband talked to Dr. Paul Mikus in Ethiopia, and he seems to think Mamush's eye problem is confined to an area where he can be a candidate for future cataract surgery. What great news! Of course, we are prepared for the worst, but we'll hope for the best for our little guy!

Announcing....

the newest addition to our family


....MAMUSH!


Kenneth and I decided to accept the referral today thanks to finally getting some information about his eye problem from Dr. Paul Mikus who is with our agency and picking up a child in Ethiopia as we speak. Mamush has River Blindness. So, what is River Blindness? River blindness (onchocerciasis) is caused by a worm that breeds in fast-flowing rivers. It is transmitted to people through the bite of a black fly. The worms spread throughout the body, and when they die, they cause intense itching and a strong immune system response that can destroy nearby tissue, such as the eye.It is a major cause of blindness in west and central Africa.

The facts about river blindness:

1. around 18 million people are infected, of whom roughly 300,000 are irreversibly blind
2. 99 per cent of those with river blindness live in Africa
3. a further 125 million people are currently at risk from infection

Mamush does suffer from blindness in one eye...

Picture and Video High!

I'm on Cloud 9 right now. I've gotten video and pictures of Maritu! In the video from Jaclyn, Maritu is sitting up and clapping to music. Oh how I could just squeeze her right now! She and Ashley both got pics of Maritu with a grin, and to my surprise, I see two teeth!

We are back home!

I feel lately like I have suffered from my teenagers Attention Deficit Disorder. First, we were going to drive to Branson, Missouri, then it was Hot Springs, Arkansas. Well, yesterday, I checked on hotels in Dallas, but we decided to wait until today. Then, after waking up and seeing that Hurricane Gustav had not changed its path, we called the people we knew that were involved with emergency management to see if we would be stopped for trying to re-enter the evacuation area. We learned that no one was being stopped, so we chose to head home. Yea!!! Traffic was minimal, and now I get to sleep in my own bed!