Another Issue of the Ferrone Daily News

Lots of fun stuff has been going on around here lately. Our most newsworthy event was we celebrated my mom's birthday! For her special day, we went to a nice, quiet, peaceful restaurant where no other kids seemed to venture. I like to think we livened up the joint a little bit!

Then, we went to visit Great. 

And here we have the four Catherines.

It's just not a birthday without a box of chocolates. I got my mom dark chocolates, which the kids aren't keen on, so she actually got to eat her candy this year.

Special poems and pictures were received. 

Then it was time to party with some ABBA!!!! 

Dancing Queen!!! 

Mama Mia! 

I really love Abba! 

We decided we'd better not light the candles with Great on oxygen. That would have been a little too much excitement! 

In fashion news, I got a few spiffy tattoos. Sure, Crayola says they're washable, but not when they are applied so densely. There's a lesson in there somewhere. 

Many creative tattoos were available. Notice the cost? A mere $20! 

She's a star! 

The girls had a super fun sleep-over, but of course, not much sleeping occurred. I think our table is pretty much at maximum capacity here! 

Enjoying the last days of summer...... 

...because soon it's going to be getting chilly! The girls are already planning their Halloween costumes. I really want them to be a theme. Any ideas for five girls?

In Entertainment, we have our first movie night with our new couch. Who knew a skateboard made such a great table!

This issue of the Ferrone Daily News is brought to you by the cutie pooties!

A Special Birthday Wish

 In just three days, a special little girl from across the ocean will be turning four! Sweet little Rowyn!

She has been waiting a long time to find her family, but they finally found her! Soon they will travel to China and bring to to her forever home. My good friend, Tracey, will soon be able to kiss Rowyn's sweet little cheeks! I was so blessed that Tracey was able to take pictures of Francesca and learn more about her before I came for her. Now, she needs our help! They still need $1000 to be able to send her dossier to China.

Her sister, Obrion, is asking for a special prayer from us to help.

Please check out their blog and see if you might offer a dollar and a prayer for little Rowyn!

Thank you!

A Bunch of Oobleck

Today was a fun day. The girls really like their school. When I picked them up from school today, Isabella was holding a baby bunny!!! Oh no!!! We are NOT getting another pet!

The three little ones and I had so much fun just being together. We kind of had a homebody day. Catherine is doing so well with her school work.  

I probably could have gotten some laundry done, but when the mood strikes me, there's just no telling what project will come up with!

Today, we made something called Oobleck. I even learned something about non-newtonian fluids (doesn't that sound impressive!) 

You just mix some cornstarch, water and a little food coloring together and.......

Ta-da!!!! Well, I thought it was cool, but Victoria wanted no part of it! 

Francesca was down-right horrified! 

But Catherine loved it! She loves messes. 

It's a liquid and a solid at the same time! 

The oobleck really wasn't too hard to clean up. The key was to wait until it dried and then scrap it off the table. Gotta start teaching them to clean early;  someone has to do it! 

Victoria finally got into the spirit of things! 

Now don't you all just want to whip up a big batch of oobleck! 

Thank you so much for all your supportive comments. I don't want to paint a perfect picture of our family. We have problems, but we love each other and we try to do our best. I think that if we are being called to help another child, then we should give it our all! 

I continue to research countries where I think there is the greatest need for adoption. I thought about Hong Kong, but the children there are very well cared for, which is a wonderful thing, but I guess I am hoping that we can adopt a child who might not have a chance. Perhaps we should go back to Ukraine? I have looked into the special needs China program, but it seems a bit competitive. One agency told me that they even have someone stay up all night to lock in a child's file for parents. I guess I feel like if there are other families who want a child, then we should step down. I really feel drawn to Colombia, but I am not sure enough about the process yet. I have thought about Uganda, but the travel is long. I promised my kids I would never leave them for a long time again. If anyone has any other ideas, please let me know!

First Day

Today was Isabella and Anastasia's first day at their "two day a week" school. They were really excited! 

I can't believe how grown up they are getting to be! They really make me proud. Today, Anastasia had a candy bar and immediately divided it in half and shared with Isabella. 

Amazingly, we all were dressed and ready to go nice and early! 

After the big kids left, it was time to get down to some of Catherine's schoolwork. Catherine would probably not be old enough to attend public school, but she is certainly ready to learn! Today she wrote her numbers up to 20 all by herself! 

Of course, we always fit time in for petting our special pup, Isaac.  He is 14 years old, but he isn't doing very well.  Poor guy.

The babies learned all about playing in the rice bucket. I remember when Francesca was totally freaked out by different textures, now she is a champ! (notice Victoria throwing rice on the floor, sigh!)

Victoria has a new means of locomotion. Soon we'll be hitting the skateboard park! 

Oh yea, she is a rockstar, using those new fingers with scissors (and apparently for drawing on her face and hands with green marker too!)

Check out Victoria's legs! She is finally able to put them close together again.

Remember how wide her legs were after her casts came off?

You all may have noticed that I have turned moderation on for comments. I received a very hurtful comment from someone I know. I know everyone is not going to agree with our life and decisions, and that's ok, but slander is not ok. I am concerned because my children love to read my blog and I don't want them to be hurt.  Writing has always been a joy for me.  I really enjoy sharing things with all of you, who I think of as friends. I feel rather defeated, like I have to be careful what I write. 

Wild and Crazy

Our weekend was filled to the brim with all kinds of excitement. I taught the babies how to wash the windows! They certainly needed it (the windows, not the babies)! I am amazed at how much taller Francesca is than Victoria. They are only six months apart.

Catherine is going to be really sad when the weather gets colder and she can't wear her bathing suit everyday!

Every night is a party at our house! 

Who needs tv? Or paper?

We did have some excitement! We finally found a couch we can all sit on together! And the cushions are sewn in so they can't be thrown around everywhere! I love craigslist! 

Catherine has really embraced her big sister role. 

Check out the cool shoes! They were Elliot's! I found them when I was cleaning the garage. I am quite proud of myself because, as you know, organizing is not one of my strengths. I took 6 loads of stuff to Goodwill! Whoo hoo! 

Thank you all for your tremendous support about my last post! I will let you all know how things unfold. If anyone has any questions, feel free to ask. Someone asked if I would ever consider sending the big girls to school. Right now homeschooling is right for our family. The girls do attend a two day a week school, but I really love teaching Isabella and Anastasia (and the little ones too). I try not to worry about what could happen in the future. They really enjoy learning and that is so important.

I am praying for guidance and researching countries to see which feels right. We are open to lots of special needs, but we would like the child to be much younger than Victoria, so that seems to be difficult. We don't want to compete to adopt a child, we want to adopt one truly in need. 

Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend!