tying a knot at the end of my rope and hanging on

Our kids have been home from everything they attend "mostly" for close to 6 weeks now-with the occasional break.  


They have been sick-either with colds, staff resistant infections or some other nutty health related reason and I am going completely insane. Warm weather pllllllleeeeaaaassseee come soon!!! 


Thank goodness I got to go to Chicago last weekend- as I came home to one of Habtamu's molluscum contagiosm "wart things" on his face completely inflamed to the size of a golf ball. NO Joke.  These things have been the most challenging part in terms of health in our adoption adjustment.  Can I just say how much I hate them!!! Debritu's finally went away in August and Habtamu's are still hanging around. Sure wish they were not on his face!  He's been home all week as we've been going to the doctors every other day- in hopes that the swelling in the tissue will reduce and they can operate on it to relieve the liquid pressure under the skin.  Not that I'm thrilled to have his face operated on by any means.  


He seems to be regressing and having a bit of trauma around the pain associated with this experience.  He's displaying an array of behaviors we have not witnessed since he first arrived- bursts of undefinable crying fits, emotional instability, clingy and then removed.. he's even playing games using Amharic that we haven't seen in months..  This week has been the hardest for him and for us (hardest in a long long time that is).  


Debritu is doing really well at the moment- her colds are currently gone (thank goodness they are taking turns on their illnesses) she is just fully blossomed (I hope) in her terrible two's and is challenging everything we try to do with her.  She's a very strong willed girly girl being raised by a bit of a tom boy-laugh.  Never did I see the day where I'd enjoy a tea party, painting nails, braiding hair, and trying on different shoes.. but she loves it all.. if it's girly- it oooozzzesss out of her-laugh.  Truly enjoyable outside of her temper tantrums... she's just as moody as Habtamu these days-laugh.


sorry- I haven't posted in a while- I'm busy tying a knot at the end of my rope and hanging on.. wish me luck!

Hair....Hair... Hair....

I've spent the past 9 months doing Debritu and Habtamu's hair.  We've purchased and tried so many different products.  I wanted something I wouldn't have to mail order everytime we needed product and found that I like Virgin Coconut Oil and Argan oil so far for Debritu's hair and Habtamu I use the Argan oil but he doesn't seem to need any "special products". I'm still searching for a conditioner or shampoo that we will be happy with. So far I seem to like the olive oil products-but the decisions not made there yet.

The Argan oil at Sally's worked so much better than the Moroccan Oil from my hair dresser- I have to use less of it and it costs a fraction of what the Moroccan Oil does at the hair salon.
Argan Oil:

http://www.sallybeauty.com/moroccan-oil/ONEONL16,default,pd.html

Coconut Oil- I love it.  Fill the sink up with warm water- put the coconut oil in a plastic cup and warm it in the water in the sink- then condition their hair and then add probably two tbls of the warm oil to Debritu's hair-less to Habtamu's and let it sit in their hair while they are in the bath. I've tried it on their dry hair before washing but it takes too much product... I've been trying differerent products out and am not ready to recommend one-but I have tried an organics warming oil purchased at Price Chopper, Spectrum Naturals: Organic coconut oil, at walmart (although I'm not a huge fan of walmart shopping-it's in a green bottle), one from Vitamin world and one from GNC.

If you are working with textured or curly African hair products-what are the Shampoo and Conditioning products you use that you don't have to "buy online?" 

First 2 Weeks at OneTrueMedia.com

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Adoption, hospital, RSV and our puzzle master

Habtamu gets sick:

Habtamu survived his first sick visits at the hospital this week.  Wednesday night he was coughing a lot.  Then the next morning - he seemed to be improving-but by 11am he had labored breathing and a fever of 103.7.  The labored breathing scared me as he was also pale- I never knew he could be so "pale". His beautiful complexion was blotched with a white "hugh" that made me very nervous. 

I called the doctor for our first "sick" appointment that felt really serious.  At 2:00 we went into the doctors office and they started talking about admitting him tomorrow if this was not the peak of his illness and that we needed to return in 24 hours- in the meantime give him alternating doses of Motrin and Tylenol.  

Would you believe 24 hours later- this kid was wanting to jump around-and outside of a cough- you would have had no idea that he was so close to being admitted due to an inability to get enough Oxygen.  It's amazing!!!   

Sickness and Adoption:

They had to take a chest x-ray of H and I was excited to hear that they were taking an x-ray because it was yet another part of his past that if there were any "problems" the doctor would also find those. It's a weird excitement to know that you don't know your child's past and little things like an x-ray will lead further down that road of understanding.  The doctor walks in the room after reading the x-ray and says to me "how long has he been in the country" for no reason at all my heart starts pounding at this innocent question. OMG-Does she think I beat him- why would she ask that- what did the X-rays show- laugh- what are we about to discover from his past- suddenly- I dont want to know!!!   I carefully say 8 months- she says- hmmm, It looks like he has RSV - and it's not common to see this at his age here and he hasn't had a lot of respiratory difficulties in those 8 months so far-interesting. I breathed out a sigh of relief. Having no idea what RSV was- it was a better answer than well- he show signs of broken ribs in the past or anything.  It was ridiculous really- here I am in the room with my boy who is having trouble breathing and I am worried/excited about what they found on his x-rays.  I take a deep breath and say to myself.. uahhhhhhh Adoption. 

Our Puzzle master:
While Habtamu is home all day (he's contagious) along with Debritu-I've discovered a way to get some time to shower and or check my email-maybe next week I'll test my idea to see if this works for the long run by trying to make a phone call-laugh. 


When Debritu takes a nap I get out a 100 piece puzzle and give it to Habtamu to complete.. This gives me an hour to an hour and half of piece and quiet.. WOOO HOOO... The kid loves loves loves puzzles. 


We have a 300 piece puzzle he still hasn't completed it on his own-but I don't think it will be long before he's ready to do it.  Imagine- what I can do with all that "free" time when he's doing 300 piece puzzles. Bring it on Baby!

It all happened so FAST

8 months ago I became a new mom of 2 new little ones... Sometimes-It seems like the other day-we accepted the "referral" of a 14 month old "baby".

While I am still learning to answer to "mama" and "come" and "respond to help"

She is now- 5 inches taller, walking, talking (bossing), wearing big girl panties, using the toilet and wow -this past week she's been preferring to sleep.... in a "big girl bed".  It's amazing- every step of the way- we've rejoiced her accomplishments and yet.... where did the little girl that could fit in my arms and was sucking on that bottle go??

Tonight- we celebrate the move- from Crib to toddler bed.... and in between my tears I am thinking "you go girl"... Be all that you can! We love you.

First "family" cold... AaaaCccchhhhhhuuuuu

Well- we're just about finished with our last family cold. Denis got sick when we visited our friends house (on the way home) last week- and this week the rest of us have been down with the same cold.  Denis was miserable- like a little boy last week- and now this week- Habtamu, Debritu and myself have all been "below the weather". Which if you are from New England - is pretty darn low-laugh.  How did we keep ourselves entertained.

The kids got to see some Winnie the Pooh and their first Sesame Street Video's on Television.  Kako (Debritu) is now saying "Pooohhh" and "Elmo" at the Television-laugh- so quickly they learn since TV is at a minimum at our home under "normal" circumstances. We practiced our coloring and lettering, and then letters, colors and numbers again and again :-).  Habtamu is struggling with his little d, little p and little b currently.
We're playing with our puzzles and other "sitting" games.  Kako  keeps wanting to take baths-laugh.  She's running into the bathroom saying "shower" or crawling into the bathtub.

To prove that I'm nuts-We've brought the little kid bikes into the house (?) and we're keeping sugared up on juices and then "sitting some more"...  The crock pot is "fully employed" making us our dinners... can you say Chicken soup and more chicken soup??

I'd take a picture of the big box of tissues-- or our big red noses-but decided a few simple words would be fun too...after all- a picture of me as a sicko on the internet- hmmmm. yuck-laugh.

So AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHCHOOOOOOOOO ... and don't forget to take your vitamins-laugh.

Hugs and "sniffles",
Kim

Another week- from Habtamu

This week I started going to school. I can't figure out what days I go and what days I do not. Some mornings daddy wakes me up- hurries me through breakfast and we run out to his work car, then other days- like today-I wake up on my own and we've been up for hours but I'm still in my pajamas. I keep reminding them that we are still in our pajamas and they seem excited about this-so weird.

In school they let me get dirty, mom and dad like to take my clothes off when they know I'm going to get dirty. At school they have a bike and I can get dirty with my clothes on- it's lots of fun. To get dirty-I put my hands in this colorful liquid they call "paint" and smeared it all over my clothes-Mommy and daddy didn't send me with extra clothing so I thought for sure I was going to be in "trouble" when they picked me up. Thank goodness it was mommy that got me- she just laughed it off.

I love Elmo-but Mr. Noodle is strange- mom keeps saying something about if he was around in real life he wouldn't be allowed near us- not sure what she means. When I arrived in America grandpa gave me a balloon with Mickey on it. We went to AC's house a lot this weekend and she showed me who he was- on this show called "Mickey's playhouse". Daddy's been singing songs about "hot dogs" since we watched it. My Aunt F kept saying she lives with Mickey. I'm a little confused about these americans - Aunt F lives with Mickey and my Grandma "football" lives with a moose - and I live with a lion.

Mom's no longer walking with those big sticks-but is still having some difficulty. Can't wait until she can run and play again- she will run and play again right???? I got a new car seat this week- it seems each week I get a new seat in the car- first it was a baby seat, then a big kids seat-the big kids seat kept slipping out from under me- so mom and I went to this huge store with lot's of babies crying in it- and got a seat that is not a baby seat and not a big kid seat- then mom had us stand in a "parking lot" - this place where there are lots of cars we can't touch or get into- for an hour in the rain- while she tried to "make me more safe". The entire time- she left Cako in the cart and asked me "not to help". Sometimes- she's really stubborn and refuses my help-but other times she really wants it- wish I could figure out when to help and when not to.

Oh- and I visited the man who likes to put his hands in my mouth again this week. He removed another tooth. If I keep visiting him- I'm not going to have any teeth left??? I've decided I don't like this man.

We had a bird in our house yesterday. First a Lion, then a bird- it was flying around and daddy isn't sure how it got it- and he chased it around to get it out. Funny that the lion didn't notice the bird- and wasn't alarmed by daddy running around. Does this mean that this is regular behavior for him? I'll let you know-but daddy running around in circles was very funny- so I'm not sure how Geneva wasn't excited by this. This Lion sleeps a lot.

Kako has learned the word- up this week. It's the only thing she says that they seem to understand her saying. Mom get's very excited when she says it. So- she's saying it a lot.. ughh.

Well, I hear we are going to visit my cousin T with his family for a party- I should go and remind them that we are still in our pajamas- just incase.

Have a great day- Habtamu

Habtamu and the Petting Zoo

On Mother's day we went to the zoo. We ended our visit at the zoo with some time at the petting zoo. Most of the children at the zoo were walking up to the sheep, goats and other animals faces to ohhh and awwhh over how sweet looking they are-etc. Not Habtamu. He walked up to the sheeps and goats buttocks and grabbed their hind ends to see how fat they were. I was laughing hysterically and he'd turn and look and me- and then go to the next "beg" - sheep. I looked around at the other parents and nobody seemed to notice my son's "selection" process-and I was bent over with laughter. Habtamu was ending his day at the zoo- by selecting our DINNER.... Ethiopian Style-laugh.

Attached our pictures of Habtamu with the beg we purchased for the second Easter (or close to) before we departed Ethiopia this year.