Busy, busy

We are fully engulfed in school and sports!  All the kids are really enjoying school and getting back into a routine.  I was dreading getting all 3 moving in the morning and in the car on time, but I devised a star system and so far, it has been working really well and I am not sure if I've even raised my voice yet.  What usually drives me crazy in the mornings is repeating myself over and over of what they need to do, so I decided to make a list for each of them everyday and when they finish a task, they erase it.  If they get their list done, they each get a star and after 20 stars they will get a prize.  It has been working so well that I've added chores like scooping the litter box, vacuuming, practicing piano, taking out the garbage, unloading the dishwasher and making part of their lunch and I am surprised at how productive they can be in the morning :o)!!   If they are all in the car by 8:10 they get a group star and after 20 stars they will get to go to the movies.
I have really been enjoying my mornings where I can catch up, grocery shop, work-out or read without any interruption.  Not sure that I'll ever be totally caught up, but I am going to try to get as caught up as I can because tonight is back to school night and I'll have a pretty good idea when I will volunteer in the classroom.
School has been huge for K...He struggled a bit after we got back to California.  Change is hard for him and it seems that restarting visitation brings up some questions in his mind.  I don’t think he is sure what is going to happen and his behavior digresses.  I did a lot of extra therapy with him and it has helped, but a few weeks ago he had a lot of issues with controlling his body.  I changed his sheets 4 times because he was wetting the bed and then he pooped in our gym pool :o(.  It is hard to describe his other behavior struggles we’ve had during that time, but I will say that if someone didn’t know him, they might think he had ADHD.  He had very little awareness toward his surroundings and an inability to control his body movements.  
 At 3 in the morning, I was awake for a long time trying to understand what might be going on in his little head.  The next day, I decided to ask him a bunch of big picture questions about his life and being a foster child to see if anything was bothering him.  He answered yes to only one question, “Are you worried you are going to move again.”  We talked through it and he cuddled up and was able to just sit still for 10 minutes, which was huge progress.  We revisit this every so often and I always tell him he is staying with us, but maybe because he isn’t a “Wade” yet, he doesn’t believe it.  Things seem to be better after our talk and then when school started, he really turned a corner.  I think because they are all at the same school, he feels more secure and the same as Reggie and Ainsley.  He also started soccer and that may be helping as well!

Here's a cute conversation between K and his soccer friend-the dad e-mailed me....said it made his day :o).

Brandon: Khalif does your mom know how to read?

K: Yes. She reads the Bible.

Brandon: I have a Bible with pictures in it.

K: My Mom has a big Bible. Do you know how to read?

Brandon: No, but I read my Bible.

K: Did you know that the Bible is all true?

Brandon: Yep and Jesus is good.

K: Yes. Look at my pichachoo.....

Ainlsey has been going to gym 4 days a week and loving it.  She is getting ready for her first meet this weekend, but seemed to have tweaked her groin yesterday, so could barely walk.  I hope it heals quickly, but in my experience, the groin injuries linger, but I guess she has youth on her side!  We managed to fit in a couple of horse riding lessons (her birthday present that I won in a raffle!) and she loved that.

 Reggie had a swim meet last weekend and had some huge improvement since his last competition.  He got an "A" time in the 50 free-still not sure what that means, but it is good and puts him in a more competitive group.  He also really loved doing the breast stroke and placed 2nd in his heat.  He seems to be enjoying it more and more :o).  The babysitter came on Sat. and Ryan and I took Reggie on his scout hike at Big Basin.  It was so enjoyable to have some time with just him.  The trees were amazing and we learned a lot from our guide.  The drive was a little nerve wracking, lots of hairpin turns and skinny roads (not even wide enough for stripes) and since we were late, Ryan was driving like a maniac.  I was so carsick on the way out, just hoping I didn't toss my cookies!
This tree is a few thousand years old!  You can see it withstood a fire or maybe more than one fire!