Where do I begin??

Things in Hortonville have been rough lately. To use the word overwhelmed is an understatement. It seems like when times are busy I still find time to blog. But lately, it's just not the busy-ness of life. It's the feeling of not being able to breathe that keeps me from blogging. I fear, at this point in this post, that this will all come out like a bunch of whining babble. I hope not, but if it does. It's real. And it's life. I do believe we have talked about THAT before!! Anyhow. Where to begin.

I finally made it through the school year. All children much smarter than on the first day of school. They are all happily BORED to death being that ON THE DAY THE COUNTRY CLUB POOL IS SUPPOSED TO OPEN...CASE IS RUNNING 103 DEGREE FEVER!! Lovely. Poor kids. They are going to possibly die if they have to play on the slip-n-slide ONE MORE TIME!!! Maybe tomorrow.

Jason and I will be married for 12 years on Sunday. We were planning a little over night adventure to the city, but as the saying goes..."same song, second verse", we have sick children( as we did last year on our anniversary) and grandparents that went out of town without asking us for permission. How rude!!

Kate will turn 10 on Monday. I cannot believe I have a child in the double digits. I tear up just thinking about it. Time really does fly by. Does any mother out there feel like they are adequately enjoying their child's time as "babies"? Am I taking it all in enough? DOUBLE DIGITS, PEOPLE...T.E.N....10~~She is turning out to be a lovely little lady.

My son(I'll give you one guess) ran at top speed through his bedroom yesterday and shoved BOTH arms and hands through the window. Completely shattered the entire pane of glass. When I asked him WHY he was running inside he said, "Momma, I was trying to make a home run!" SOMEHOW, he came away from the whole deal without a single scratch. I'm telling you, Case Horton is meant to be on this planet and the Lord has great plans for him. His little life is such a blessing!

Jason ordered all 5 kids their own turtle. So, five, teeny, tiny Red Eared Sliders, came to us on Wednesday shipped in a tiny tub in a tiny box. ALIVE. ALL FIVE! They are such cute little guys. We set them loose in our pond in the back yard. They seem to be doing well. And just in case you are curious about their names.....Kooper named his Tank. Case...Camo. Kate...Kiwi. Aliviah...Miley. And Kenna Mae calls hers Tinkerbell about half the time and Little Froggie the other half. And YES she knows it's a turtle. Don't ask me why???

The biggest happening around here as been the hardest for me to deal with. Jason and I have made the decision to proceed with adoption of Aliviah. It has been the hardest thing I have ever done in my life. And although my sister has agreed to sign all paperwork necessary, this decision has been agonizing for me. To make the decision that someone doesn't deserve to raise their child breaks me. Being a mother is the best thing that has ever happen to me. Or the second thing, JASON being the best thing. I treasure every moment with my babies. The lump in my throat tells me that I am sad for my sister. I wanted her to change so desperately. She has not. And she knows that we can give Aliviah things she cannot. The Lord has not only guided us in this decision, he has literally THROWN doors open for us. I fear to say too much on this blog. You never know who might be reading. Just know that this decision has been made by both Jason and I AND our little family, and my sister.

Please know, also, that my anxiety over all this has nothing to do with Aliviah and how we feel about her. She is gorgeous. She is happy...all the time. She is helpful. She is well behaved. She fits into our family as though she is already a Horton. We love her and we are proud she will be one of us. My anxiety stems from the feeling in my heart knowing how badly I am hurting someone I love and care about so much. It is the realization that no matter how bad you want someone to change, sometimes, they just are who they are and there is NOTHING anyone can do about it. Except the great Healer. The Lord works miracles like this everyday. But it all boils down to choice. Please Lord, let her chose YOU!

Keep our little family in your prayers.

And now I leave you with pictures.

Five little turtles....

The Two Little Pigs performed by Kate, Kooper, Aliviah, and Kenna....so funny!!


Case's graduation(except that her technically didn't graduate)...this is the only picture we took before my camera DIED!!
The Three Musketeers...or maybe The Three Stooges!! Jackson, Creek, and Case. Aren't those adorable little blond heads??
Kenna and Sutton...her future husband
Aliviah Mae's graduation from the big K.
Playing on the slip-n-slide...AGAIN!!

In case you noticed Kate was not in some of these pictures, she and a couple of friends went to softball camp this week. It was her first time away from me like that. We made it through and she learned A TON!!

Adios! Happy Friday!