The times they are a changing!

Ahhhh the Honeymoon seems to have ended and adjustment time is here. We are having some rough weeks lately but there are still plenty of good times mixed into the roughness.  I have realized I dont like playing referee and just chucked Tommy and Luke in their bedroom yesterday and today for times to just figure it out for themselves (whatever that intailed... mom didnt open the door, it sounded ugly for awhile but they emerged yesterday as best buds... (they were told they couldnt come out until the figured out how to get along if that  took an hour, a day, a week, a month or a year! mom didnt care just dont come out until you can make some peace...) they emerged from the room 3 hours later and were best inseperable buds again. No, I am not fooled and know that the tough times are just hitting but it seemed to work for the day. I used the same tactic today as I couldnt take the fighting over everything (and yes Myra this next line is for you..) even over the oxygen they were breathing.. I swear one gets more oxygen then the other..

We also have a pretty big case of the "MINE"'s going on.. Odd that I truly expected that when Luke first  arrived and not now a few months later, but it is here either way. Luke has laid claim to just about every item one can claim in a house and outside the house and is fighting tooth and nail for these items.. only problem is that 98% of what he is claiming isnt his.. We are working on it and know this will go away but it is odd that he has been fine since we arrived home and this surfaces now ( it is also the cause for 90% of the fighting that is going on too)

Lukes signing has taken a turn for the worst and we are frustrated beyond belief. We feel part of it is the program where he goes (there is nothing wrong with the program for it is a good program) it is just that most if, not all of the kids there use their voice along with signing and have hearing aides and or cochlear implants and therefore are more oral then Luke and it is having an impact on Lukes signing. Plus he decided at home this week he is hearing.. sorta making it interesting around the house as he doesnt make any words ...just sounds when he speaks. (plus making his Deaf dad nuts). He has developed or picked up some crazy lazy signing habits here and there and we are working hard to correct them.... but it is making this momma want to rip out her hair. Stuff he signed beautiful when he came home is now replaced with some baby sloppy I dont know what sign....we are working on fixing things but he is continuing to use the wrong or baby sign of what he should be signing..... working on it.. working on it.....

I am soon to enter into a full on battle with my school district over Lukes education for next year. They are wanting to mainstream Luke in the schools 4th-6th grade Resource room (this is initially what I thought we wanted to do... but have since drastically changed our minds) with a teacher of the Deaf for 2 hours a day. Luke would be the only Deaf child there. ( I had originally said that if we kept Luke in my home district it would be with a full time teacher of the Deaf and a full time interpreter, so 2 hours a day teacher of the Deaf and the rest with an interpreter is not making me happy). Plus I decided that he MUST be with Deaf peers and be immeresed in the Deaf language of ASL at school as well as at home. We are pushing for the Delaware school for the Deaf (about 35-40 min away) but it is out of state and we are not getting a good response from that.  I was told on Friday that them providing Luke with a 2 hour a day one on one teacher is them providing the Least Restrictive Environment and I should be happy with it as there are no other choices. Placing Luke with all hearing children in a 4th-6th grade school with his social, emotional and language immaturities (oftening showing at way younger then is soon to be 5 year old sister) is the MOST restrtictive environment at this moment in time... I told them I wont sign an IEP that places him in my home district and that we will file for Due Process... problem is I have no evaluations on Luke yet and that is going to make this fight very hard.  (  I have been begging for our specialized CST for Deaf and hard of hearing to evaluate him but my district has drug their feet so bad and would not contact them until just this last week even though I have been asking for that since the beginning of February)

Enough of the negative stuff!!!!

I am getting ready for Summer and praying we get to head to the beach alot, Luke cannot wait to "go play in the mud" hahah. He is excited and cant wait to get in our pool. We are gonna get some good work in teaching him to swim. I am excited for the summer and all the firsts we are going to have.

This is a busy week for us as Paige turns 5 at 9:09 tomorrow morning hahah. She is so excited she cant wait! Next Sunday Aaron turns 19.. Wow where have all those years gone? It seems crazy.  My babies are getting old.. there momma is too!

Yesterday Luke met his first police officer as he stopped next door to talk to my neighbor ( my neighbor is an Police explorer and this was one of the officers he works with) and I am so glad he was such a nice officer and  that he stayed and took his time to let Luke ask him a ton of questions and even took him for a short ride with lights and sirens. Luke loved it, he checked out all of his "officer tools" too.  Luke is finally now not horrified of police officers. Since the day we met Luke he freaks out every time he sees a police officer and I hate that he is afraid of those that live to protect us. I am grateful for Officer Adam for taking his time to ease the fears of a little boy!! Thank you!

Dont take this post the wrong way, we are having plenty of good times it is just that the tides have shifted within the last 2 weeks and our bed of roses has grown a few weeds hahah. I am 100% confident we will be able to pull the weeds and life will gain some sense of normallcy (I must tell you I am laughing as I type that word as my house is always far from normal hahah) at least we will develop a new normal around here anyway. Summer is a coming and there is MUCH fun to be had!!! Bring on the summer and the good times!

      My goofy boy Tommy in his favorite "hiding" spot  Gotta love his humor

                                  Tommy signing "where is Paige?" hahah

                                                                  Paige found Luke!

            Luke likes to do his patrol, I mean turn for hide and seek on his bike hahah

 My goofy trio... (Luke should be the hear no evil one. but remember.. he is "hearing" this week) heheh

                  Paige hiding (no this isnt really how my kids hide, it is just them being goofy!)

                   Luke taking a ride in the officers car! ( he thought he was SOOO cool!)

                                                        Lights and sirens too!

 Luke wanted to know why there was no K-9 dog in there and if the officer wanted to take our dog, Chase with him for work,but was told that in no way could he keep Lukes best bud, Chase!!!

 Luke and his new favorite friend! (here is hoping he doesnt dial 9-1-1 this week as he was fascinated with that being written on the cop car)

                  Tommy and Luke after they were tossed in their room to hash out their differences..

                                                What a difference 3 hours makes

                                                          Yea they are strange....

                                           But they are my strange boys and I love them!

  This was them all crashed out.. they were having a "sleep over" pretty funny since they share a room!

Mothers day

Mothers day was an amazing day for me. I had all 4 of my babies home with me, (Aaron is now home from college until fall). It was nice to have everyone together.  I have to say that Luke was more excited about Mothers day then I was hahah. He kept telling me that he had a surprise for me (for a few days) and he couldnt tell me but that it was for his "special mother". He would get so excited when he would talk about Mothers day that it made me well up with tears. It is so strange for me to think that this little boy, who for 10 years has had no mother to hug and hold him, tell him everything will be ok and just be there for him, is excited to celebrate this day with me (his new mommy of just 3 and half months). When we first met Luke he didnt really want me near him or to touch him.. OHHHH what a difference a few months makes!  This might sound like I am bragging and I guess in a way I am, but I dont really mean it as bragging... just that this is NOT what I expected in this short time, Luke and I are inseperable and he is such a Momma's Boy! The radiating smile I get every morning when he wakes and comes in my room to see me and give me such a HUGE hug is delightful. The amazing joy I feel everytime Luke jumps on my hips wrapping both his legs around me and puts his head on my shoulder and just hums to himself with joy is undescribable for me! (mind you he is 80 lbs now.. 64 lbs when we met him).... I love the way he looks into my eyes when he comes up for a hug or wants a kiss or wants me to just wrap my arms around him or have him sit on my lap. Luke is the biggest cuddle bug ever! Which for this momma is a dream come true, as I am too! My 18 year old has never been a huge cuddle bug, my 9 year old is semi a cuddle bug even though he used to be a big one (he is getting to be a BIG Boy now hahah) and my 4 year old daughter is still my snuggle princess, but it is amazing to have Luke so attached and to see how he looks at his momma, I am SO PROUD that the Lord our God picked me to be his Mom that I cant imagine what I have done to deserve this honor!

When I think of all the years that my little man never had a momma to make amazing cards and drawings for (trust me they are amazing) it breaks my heart, I wonder if he even wonders who gave birth to him...... I sure do. I wonder what they were thinking when they laid this precious little boy on the steps outside the orphanage at 8 months old hoping someone would find him and take him in. I wonder if they ever think of this little boy that they gave up ( in my mind I believe she does).  I wonder if they realized he would still be in that orphanage 10 years later after that day they laid him on the steps..............

I personally am grateful to our BIG BIG GOD for making the BIG decision to have Luke be my son and to have Luke have Tom be his father,  have Aaron, Tommy and Paige be his brothers and sister! Only God could have placed Luke in our family and have known that he was the perfect fit for my crazy gang! Only God would know that a 10 year old Deaf child that had no language oe education for the first 10 years of his life would need a very specific family in order to thrive and do well! Thank you Lord for watching over my precious son for 10 years and delivering him to me this Jan 17, 2011 and making him officially my son!

I am so happy to say Lukes first time to celebrate the love of a Mother was a huge success! I was given my amazing card and letter from Luke and it was with such Love and Joy that he presented them to me! My Tommy wrote me a card that had me crying like a baby, my Paigey gave me some beautfiul seeds that she planted in a pot she made and decorated with Love, Aaron went out and bought me flowers all on his own (that has never happend and this momma was very happy about that!).  The kids Aunt Kimmy and Aunt Jenn drove up from Florida and spent the day with us (Lukes first time meeting his Aunts!) and my mom and dad came to spend time with us as well. It was a gorgeous day and I loved being with my family. The winds have blown my family members all over the USA  recently  and spending time together as a family has become a  rare and cherished event, our whole family wasnt together but I am grateful for those of us that could gather! Thank you Lord for bringing us together on this day. Thank you for an amazing Mothers day!  To my Luke, I am Proud to be your momma and promise to Love you endlessly, Welcome to the family Luke Xinhai Worrell!!!!!!!

                             Luke meets his Aunt Kimmy for the 1st time!

    Luke and his bestest pal, Chase (who knew he would love this 135 lb King German Shepard!)

          Aunt Jenn (holding Lexi), Aaron, Aunt Kimmy, Tommy, Me, Luke, Paige, Tom, Poppy, Nanny

 Paige and her 3D sidewalk chalk glasses (way cool!.. but not cool when Luke wore them to ride his bike :/ )

                                                My beautiful princess, Paige

                                  My beautiful Mothers Day booklet from Luke!

                                                    My Mothers Day card (the cover)

                  The inside of my card (made me cry and I look darn good in his drawing!)

                                                Tommy and Luke (goofballs!)

  

      They were playing in the sprinklers and it was Lukes first time and he LOVED it!

                                           It turned into an all out sprinkler war hahah!

                                        Luke telling you how much "FUN" the sprinkler war was!

My beautiful children!!!

Lukes 1st Easter!

I am getting ready to leave for a few days and have a ton to do, but feel these pictures say just about everything! Luke loved his first Holiday! It was a busy one and we had a full house as two of Aarons friends from College came home with him for the weekend but it all went well. Luke loved dying eggs and loved finding them in the morning. In our house we hide the baskets too. He wasnt sure why he needed to find the "empty" basket until Aaron found his and then we all had to dodge and weave out of this way as he raced through the house like a mad man. He had a struggle finding his basket but with a few tiny hints from Tommy he eventually found it in the washing machine! It was a great day and Luke surely loved it! It was nice to spend time together with our family!

                                  Tommy and Luke in their new outfits!

                                                        My beautiful gang!

                                                  The egg hunt underway!

                                           Paige loved looking in the eggs to see what was in there

                              Aaron was the first to find his basket (no shock there!)

                                                  Tommy was the second one!

                                                              Paige came in 3rd!

                               Luke had to do some hard work to find his basket

                                        But he hit paydirt and was LOVING IT!!!!

                               I love how his smile lights up his whole face!

 Tommy showing off some of the goodies in the basket (his money is already in the bank for his "1st car fund!"

                                                              My beautiful babies

                                                               My little bubble girl!

                                      Showing off some more of his goodies!

                                                   Luke and his mom-mom

                                              Oh NO WAY!  He couldnt get over all the goodies!

                                   My cutie pie little niece, Katelyn!!! She is too cute!

2 and a half months at home and all is well!!! Beyond well actually!!!

So much has been happening that I dont know where to start! Luke is growing and growing! 11lbs and 1 inch since we came home 2 and half months ago! Crazy!!!! He went from a 10 slim with the waist cinched all the way to a 10, to a 12 slim with the waist cinched to a 12 now.. all in 2 and half months since we got home!!!  The boy is an eating machine! We have decided he needs his own refigerator haha! I finally found something the other day he doesnt like to eat and it was cooked broccoli! First time he said "do I have to eat it because I would not like to eat it".  I laughed as he has eaten everything since he has moved here!  The one thing he turns his nose up at now is Chinese food! He doesnt want to eat it and doesnt want to see it! He is truly an American boy!

Luke lost a tooth the other night and we explained all about the tooth fairy coming and taking his tooth and bringing him money! Of course if you know Luke this was followed by 100's of questions.. "How is the fairy getting in" "What does a fairy wear?" "How does the fairy see at night?" and so on.... Much too Lukes surprise the tooth was gone in the morning and money was there!! He is now asking every girl he sees if they are the fairy and if they have wings....He is also praying to God for more loose teeth so he can get more money!

Luke is one of the most amazing and resilant people I have ever met in my life! He is the happiest child ever! Luke has become quite the "Momma's Boy!" He loves being hugged and smooched and holding hands and I have realized he is in love with being loved!  He tells me a ton of times a day how much he loves me. The boy is truly a gem! Luke and his brothers get along amazing and him and Paige are inseperable at most times. Of course we have some of the "Paige touched me, he breathed on me, he touched my toy, blah blah blah" that all siblings have but I must admit it is so minimal it is sorta crazy!  Luke and Paige spend HOURS everyday riding their bikes up and down our sidewalk. I truly dont know how they find it enjoyable as the other saturday they spent 7 hours riding their bikes back and forth down the sidewalk. But all the hard work is paying off as Today Luke officially rode his bike like a "Big Boy" and had NO training wheels! He had 2 for 1 month and then 1 training wheel for 1 month and now today NONE!  He rode like a champ! I LOVED seeing the pride in his face when he took off without the one training wheel.. He looked so full of joy and pride and self accomplishment that his joy is beyond contagious. We all swore we heard the Rocky theme as he was riding!!!

Luke and Tommy have become such good pals that it is more then this mom could have ever dreamed, hoped for or prayed for to be honest! They are so caring of each other and so thoughtful to each other. Their love for each other is truly inspiring to me as a mother. The other day the two of them gave me a hard time at bed time and were being punks (which is not the norm for the two of them as they go to bed at night like angels normally). So I told them they would be punished the next day to their bedroom. I felt mean as the next day was 75 degrees and it was the first day it had been nice in awhile but I kept to my word and they were punished in their room. Well much to my surprise the two of them had a ball! To quote Tommy "Mom being punished with Luke was the best!"  Hmmm I might have to re-think my punishment strategy a little more ha. But I did capture the two of them on video and will try and post it later. I heard Luke screaming ( he is pretty loud in general but he was screaming) and ran upstairs as I thought "oh no the other shoe has finally dropped and they are fighting" I cracked open the door to see the two of them playing ball, listening to Christian Heavy Metal music and dancing around the room like two complete goof balls! I truly beemed with joy to see the two of them getting along so well! I love my boys!!! OHH and Tommy taught Luke that if he puts the music on and cranks up the bass that if Lukes lays his hands on the speakers he can feel the music and Luke is LOVING it!! He is now a music mad man hahah. Tommy is ever so the Deaf culture boy and thinking about how to include Luke in everything!!!

                                    Luke had his first horse ride and LOVED it!

                      Luke's sister Paige.. One of his best pals (his bike riding partner)

                           Luke and Tommy being ducks haah

    The bike blessing at church and one of the members blessed the boys by letting them on!

                                     Luke doesnt think he is cool or anything hahah

   Picked out his first ever Easter basket.. he went for the JUMBO one haHAH(10 years to make up for!)

    Luke got a new bear and these are his sleep partners (they work wonders for him at night)

    Me and my Luke being goofy, he is teaching me how to perfect the pouty lip heheh

Luke has seen this same picture of every one of his siblings when they were young and he wanted one of himself as he "missed it when he was little (his words)". So here is Lukes goofy hair in the tub photo!!!


OK I think I rattled on about just about everything so I will end for now! Will post (hopefully) that video in a bit!
Hoping this will work.. this is when the boys were "punished" Enjoy as I sure did!~