One Year Ago Today (and the video you've been waiting for :)

One year ago today, I had the most precious baby girl placed in my arms!! I had a wonderful gift from God GIVEN TO ME in a miracle moment in Ethiopia, Africa. I'll never be able to accurately describe the feeling one has when handed a child from across the world!! To know that someone is trusting you to give this child THE LIFE they couldn't!! It's a moment in time I NEVER want to forget....It's a moment I'll forever be grateful for..I'm grateful to God..but I'm also forever grateful to this VERY young Ethiopian Mom that made the ultimate sacrifice for her daughter!! June 15th will always be a special day in our family...it's the day Lucy Lane Martha was placed into my arms by the Hannah's Hope director, Almaz!! I woke early that morning in Addis Ababa and walked a long dusty, dirt road to arrive at the All God's Children, Hannah's Hope Orphanage where Lucy lane was waiting on the other side of the famous red gates!! The adrenaline and tears were flowing....simply amazing....

AND, ONE YEAR LATER...we have a running toddler girl that keeps us on our toes every second of every day!!! Lucy Lane has filled our hearts more than anyone could ever know...but it's her impact on the rest of the world that has left us speechless...We're forever grateful and humbled by the way God is using our little girl to bring more children to their forever families!!

And, without any further ado....Here is our ONE YEAR HOME VIDEO!!! Thank you to my friend Karen for once again making us such an incredible gift to share with the world!! We are so thankful for your friendship!! Pause the music at the bottom of my page first and ENJOY:(it may take a second to upload or at least it did on my computer :)

Lucy Lane Gotcha Day - One Year Later from kristi johnson on Vimeo.

We love you Lucy Lane Martha!! Because of you...We are better people, a better family, and richly blessed!! Happy One Year Home and Happy Tuesday to you all, kj

How Do I "Do Life" With 5 Young Kids??

So, this MUST be my TOP asked question of ALL TIMES....What Are Your Secrets To Raising 5 Young Children????? Well here goes:

First...There are NO secrets...Again, life is about perspective and attitude!! You are given a choice in this world to BE HAPPY or NOT TO BE!! That's how I look at it!! I CHOOSE to be HAPPY!! I CHOOSE to live my life a certain way that WORKS FOR ME AND MY FAMILY!!! OUR WAY WILL NOT WORK FOR MOST OTHER PEOPLE!!! I truly believe everyone holds the key and formula to making their own family WORK and RUN smoothly!! We ARE NOT perfect...We get things WRONG every day...but I'm a firm believer that if something isn't working for ya...well..then change it!!! Here are some things that we do that work for us..and well...some things that don't:
We are BUSY...Yes it is TRUE!! I run basically 24 hrs. a day for my children and hubby and house!!! I'm exhausted most days...but i don't want it any other way...I ALWAYS want to be exhausted at the end of every day knowing that i'm living my life the way God had intended!! I always knew I wanted to be a mommy...I always knew I wanted to stay at home with them..I told my hubby that on one of my first dates (yes, brave, i know :) But I made it clear that I'd give up anything to stay at home with my children some day...And, well...he said he wanted a big family too and he'd love a stay at home wife/mother some day...and well..the rest was history..I knew I could marry him!! :) (ok, so there was a little more to it than that...but you get the idea....)!!! So, we had 5 children in 6 years...and they keep us on our toes!!! But I find success by being laid back and CALM!! Yes, I'm the calm, soft spoken parent...it works for me!! Our children have never been spanked or had any physical pain inflicted on them (not that they didn't need it according to many friends and family members :) but we've chosen OTHER discipline tactics that have been successful with OUR children!! (again, i know this doesn't work for some of ya...but just sharing what we do :) I have the gift of PATIENCE with children...I think this comes from being a teacher to 20something children FIRST before becoming a parent..I was a calm teacher and IT WORKED FOR ME!! I loved my job and my students loved me..it was very rewarding!! So, I just transferred some of those skills into parenting..and wham...it worked!! I have this theory that I can't expect my children to be all those qualities that I AM NOT!! Meaning..how I can expect them to be patient, and kind, and to speak kindly to people..when they see the opposite out of me all the time???...So, modeling what I want/expect out of them is important to me!! So, i don't yell..I don't scream...and I go to bed at night with a clear conscious.....Again, i wasn't a calm and cool teen or college student...this is a behavior I CHOSE as an adult...and it works for me!!! :)

What works for us??? Spending ALL OUR TIME TOGETHER!!! You see...I choose NOT to have any other hobbies other than my family!! I don't exercise, shop, get my hair/nails done, use babysitters, work outside the home..I dont' do girl's weekends, read, or have any family helping us, etc....and if my hubby and I want to go on a date...well...we take the kids with us!! :) The hubby and I have NEVER been on an overnight trip EVER without the kids!! We literally spend every waking (and sleeping) minute with our kids. My hubby's job has NO traveling required and good hours...so we're basically always together!! And, this works for us..I wouldn't have it any other way!! Again..i know this doesn't work for most of you...but because the hubby and I are night owls..we can connect at night, check emails after the kids go to bed, I can blog...he can catch up on sports ALL at the midnight hour!!! It just doesn't work for me to be away from my family...I sincerely have more fun when the 7 of us are all together!!

Women, you aren't giving yourself enough credit!!! So, I hear all the time...I could NEVER handle 5 children that young!! Oh, really YOU COULD!! I have many friends with twice as many children as I have...and my life seems simple and easy to them!! We women are capable of SO MUCH MORE than we give ourselves credit for...We are selling ourselves short by saying, " I could never handle it"!!! You can do ANYTHING with God by your side!! Through prayer and a constant focus on each one of my children...I am able to successfully make them feel special in their own unique ways!! Which leads me to:

Lucy Lane is just another sibling in our family!! I might keep an adoption blog at midnight focusing on advocating for the orphaned child...but I do it in the middle of the night to NEVER take away time from all 5 of our children!! It amazes me HOW people are either so concerned about "how the bio children feel" OR "how does the adopted child feel"!!! The truth is...they all feel special because we work hard 24 hrs. a day to make that happen!! In a normal day LL is dragged around to ALL of their activities...The focus is on each one of them at different times as they do their sport or their talent!!! We eat dinner together as a family every night where one child gets the "special plate" and we all take turns saying what is special about that child!! LL is LOVED and SHE IS THE BABY right now which brings her a lot of attention...but each of her siblings had their turn at being "baby" and I pray some day that LL has the privilege of being a big sister too....we'll see!!! :)

Ohhh, the house work!!!! Yes, I fail miserably at house work!! I would much rather be setting up craft, gluing on eye balls, working on school work books...anything other than cleaning!! You can ask my college roommates: I've stunk at cleaning my entire life!! My hubby used to come over and clean my apartment before we ever got married because he felt sorry for my roommates!! It's NOT that I don't try...I feel like i'm constantly shifting laundry from the washer to the dryer, changing out the dishwasher, picking up toys, etc...but it's the actual DEEP CLEANING that I always put aside...So..the hubby does help out LOTS around the house too since we have NO HIRED HELP!! We mow our own grass, clean our own house, iron our own clothes, etc....AND, i could never do it alone...My hubby is a "hands on" Dad and helps around the house as much as he can!! We both just know that we can't possibly keep up with it all and spend the quality time we want with our 5 kids...so lots of the chores around the house get put on the back burner...This is where being laid back works for us...We just don't sweat the small stuff!! :) Yes, I'd love to have a pretty, clean house all the time...but it's NOT going to happen...so we don't strive for perfection....it works for us!! :)

Yes, there are times I just want to cry!!! It is actually rare that I cry (not really sure why that is) but going to the pool with my 5 children is one thing that causes lots of anxiety for me. So..the pool and any other deep water activity where a child can go under..JUST DOESN'T WORK FOR ME!!! I can't stand going to the pool...it is awful to me! It scares me to death and I feel VERY OUT OF CONTROL!! I've even resulted in taking my niece with me to help me..and it still is no fun...So..if you want to see me stressed and NOT COOL...come to the pool...you will see a basket case of nerves trying to keep up with 5 kids running in every direction!! :) Oh, i feel the anxiety just thinking about it!!! :)

We are different...but I like us being different!!! While my friends are all talking about their "date nights" to concerts and such....my hubby and I are talking about WHERE we're taking our kids to "do something fun" on a Friday night!! This past Friday night you could find us at one of the local baseball fields practicing Softball and enjoying a family game!! We were the ONLY ones there...I had my coffee and camera in hand..the kids ran the bases and made "dirt angels" by lying on their backs in the dirt!! That's our kind of fun!!!

You see..the hubby and I are on the same page...This is important!! We love each other more now than we did the day we got married...but we have a mutual understanding that we are doing this parent thing together and doing it well!! Again, we're not perfect..we fuss and argue at times like any other couple...but at the end of every day...I know i'm right where I'm suppose to be...I'm suppose to be exhausted, dirty and smothered in snot, kisses and stinky diapers!!! It is just the chapter of our life right now...and it will all be over in a blink of an eye!!

So, as my hubby came in from work tonight and had the kids bring me a dozen roses to remember our 13 year dating anniversary...(Yes, 13 years ago today was OUR FIRST DATE..and my hubby remembered..I didn't!! :) I'm reminded of HOW LUCKY AND BLESSED I AM.....I wish I could freeze time and remember this stage of life forever!! Again, I know the laundry must get done...but it certainly isn't the important stuff...I pray it's those DIRT ANGELS and that SPECIAL PLATE that lasts a life time with my kids...I pray they look back and remember a HAPPY MOM that loved being with them more than anything else in this world!!!

So..that's it...that's HOW WE DO 5 Kids...by being together, being thankful, Praising God, and always remembering that Life's What We Make It!!!! Happy Monday to you all, kj

LL's One Year Gotcha Day Grill Out Reunion....

Ok, so I'm alive and ready to post a few posts here in a row for the next few days...so here goes:
We only have a few days left until LL's ONE YEAR HOME GOTCHA DAY ANNIVERSARY..so...we had a little grill out Saturday night so she could be reunited with some of her HH (Hannah's Hope) travel buddies!! Here she is calling her PEEPS making sure they were going to be on time and were coming to hang with her for the night.............

She says, "Yep, Mom, they say they're comin!!!!!"

And, they start to arrive............Yay...it is Little Will (with his Momma Andi and LL and Daddy). They drove in from Knoxville to grill out with us.

And, we have Silas on the left, LL in the middle and Will on the right...I had a "Happy 1 Year Home" cake for them...we lit a "1" candle and let them blow it out together...so cute!!

Silas, LL and Will all got picked up on the same day in Ethiopia, Africa (almost) 1 year ago exactly...and now today, here they are in TN together blowing out a cake to celebrate...so cool!

LL enjoyed her cake.

2 more HH buddies came to celebrate with LL too.....These two cutie brothers came home in the last year too!! We had 5 HH kids running around my back yard...too cute!!

We attempted a few more pics of the travel buddies...but someone wasn't cooperating. My little drama queen DIDN'T want me to put her down, so when I DID try to sit her next to her best buddies...well, she threw herself back...Sorry Silas...she's a little dramatic sometimes!! :)

So, we attempted holding them for the pic...and well...Will was having more fun running around playing....Oh, well...we tried!!! :)

Well, wait...they all seemed to like the car...but no one would still look at me!! :)

**Well, it was a GREAT night...and there were tons of other local AGCI families that joined us too...All the families were either in the paper chase, on the wait list, OR getting ready for court and travel! It was so fun chatting with so many families that "GET IT" and UNDERSTAND what a "1 Year Gotcha Day Celebration" even is!! :) Thanks everybody for coming...We really appreciate you all celebrating LL's special day with us!! :)

And, tomorrow night's post: "How I Do It/Handle 5 Young Kids" I promised this post about a week ago and I now that I'm saying I'll do it tomorrow night...I'll make myself do it!! :) That has to be my #1 TOP ASKED QUESTION!!! Then Tuesday is our actual Gotcha Day Anniversary..so hopefully, I'll have a video to share with ya :) (no pressure or anything Karen :) LOL

***Happy Sunday to you all, kj

(just got this pic from my friend Andrea who came in from Atlanta for the festivities...Thanks Andrea..I just had to add it :)

Grab a Tissue..and WATCH!!! (I fixed video, i think :)

As most of you already know, my sister Kelly is working her self to death over at http://www.ordinaryhero.org/ to get the flood victims of Nashville back on their feet....Here is a GREAT video she just put together with just SOME of the stories she is currently involved in...AMAZING...and it will leave you feeling SO GRATEFUL!!! ENJOY!!!

Happy Wednesday to you all, kj

Ordinary Hero~Beyond the Nashville Flood from Kelly Putty on Vimeo.

Will Post More Soon :)

All is good and well here!! Life is good....just adjusting to our "summer schedule" (aka..the pool is kicking my b-u-t-t!!! :) LOL So, after 2 weeks of swim team, tennis team, softball tournaments, t-ball, concert in the parks, etc....WE QUIT SWIM TEAM!!! I have NO PROBLEM calling something quits when it's NOT working for us!!! :) This week has already gone much smoother NOT hangin around the pool all day (ummmm...the pool is NOT fun with 5 little ones running from me in every direction..did I mention that?? :) So....i had all good intentions on posting something "real" tonight..but my friend Karen stopped by to work on the "1 yr. home video" and well....my head is now spinning and i'm nauseated from watching so many home videos from the past year with her!! So...it's 12:52 a.m. and Karen just left...and well..I'm crashing!! More to come soon, I promise!! :) Happy Tuesday to you all, kj

How Did The Hubby and Kids React To Adopting??

Well, as I promised...another post in my series!!! If you are keeping track or want to scroll back #1. Why did we adopt, #2. Excuses We All Make #3. The Wait #4. Bonding and Attachment to LL ...AND #5 is " How the Hubby and Kids Dealt With It All":I'll start this post off by telling you that the hubby and kids and I were driving down the road the other day when I looked at hubby and said, "Hey, my next post is going to be about HOW you and the kids handled the adoption!" He said, "Wow, that will be a boring post!" :) So, I'm here to post the TRUTH..and the TRUTH is that IT WAS COMPLETELY EASY, NATURAL AND UNEVENTFUL!!! There you have it....POST OVER!!! :) Ok, so I could end there...but I know yall like more detail...so here goes:

***WHY WAS IT EASY FOR EVERYONE?
ummmm...I think because it was our #5 and I think that all the kids were used to having another sibling come into the home by #5.... There was LOTS of anticipation and excitement about bringing LL home finally....and well..they just simply loved and adored her from DAY ONE!!
Another REASON....because I think kids (and hubby) play off HOW MOM IS FEELING!! AND, I felt GREAT!! I wasn't recovering from a c-section, I wasn't hormonal, I wasn't having to lose like 80lbs., I wasn't nursing, I wasn't telling everyone to be careful and quiet because there was a newborn baby in the house. LL came from an orphanage with 70 other children..so children WERE HER THING!!! She LOVED and ADORED her siblings from day one!! She could smile and interact and laugh at the drop of a hat....AND the kids ATE THIS UP!! She was like having a REAL LIVE DOLL to them!! The point here: The kids saw ME relaxed and enjoying baby #5 which in return MAKES them feel relaxed and capable of loving and embracing her.

Another REASON....because I was careful to tell the kids over and over again that SHE WAS THEIR BABY!! THEY HAD TO HELP TAKE CARE OF HER!! They were feeding her bottles from day #2 of being home (because they were begging to, not because I wanted them to :). I was nervous about them holding her..but I let them anyways because I wanted them to bond with her. So...they rolled on the floor with her, dressed her up, fed her, carried her around, and fell in love with her more and more every day!!!

Another REASON....because their world didn't change! We didn't stay home..they still were involved and active in all their activities...They LOVED showing her off to their friends from day one!! Even George's world didn't change (which is why I think he has NEVER been jealous of her) He looked at her like, "Cool..i have a friend my size" I still carried George around everywhere...I just had Lucy in the sling on one hip..and George on the other. He kissed and hugged on her from day one...and well....he is STILL completely in love and CRAZY about his baby sister to this day:
They seriously are BEST FRIENDS!! My sister, Kasey, was carrying LL outside yesterday and walking towards her car..and I thought George was going to have a panic attack..He just kept crying and fussing telling me to GO AND GET HER!! He, from the day she came home, would look at strangers in the grocery store that were looking at her and say, "NO, she's MY baby!!" and he'd put a protective arm over her...simply precious!!! I was co-sleeping with George up until the day she came home...and well...he NOW sleeps on ONE side of me..and LL sleeps on the other!! He didn't even lose his sleeping spot!! :)

I have a sensitive bio child....My Hal was jealous when his baby brother George entered his world...He used to yell at me to, "PUT THE BABY DOWN" !! Well, I knew when LL came home that HE'D NEED TO FEEL SPECIAL TOO!! Thank goodness the first night home, Lucy Lane LAUGHED and SMILED at Hal!! Then he walked by again, and she giggled!! We ran with it!! We started saying things to Hal like, "Hal, she really likes you" and "Hal, she really thinks you're funny" AND, HIS FACE LIT UP..AND THE REST IS HISTORY!! He looked at us and said, "MOM, I think she likes me the BEST!!" We'd say, "Oh, I think you're right, Hal!" :) So, almost 365 days later....Our Adoption was the BEST thing to EVER happen to Hal!! He shows a love for LL like i've never seen before!! He adores her!! He says out of the clear blue sky, "Mom, I just LOVE her so much!" It warms our heart in a way that I just can't explain. My hubby and I have both said MANY times that we think Lucy Lane was a little gift sent from heaven JUST FOR OUR HAL!! She is the first and last thing he thinks of each day. They truly have a special bond that I thank God for each and every day!!!


My GIRLS....Well, my big girls have been crazy about her from day one!! They are like "little moms" to her. They carry her around and argue over WHO gets to sit on the couch next to her..and who's turn it is to sit next to her in the car!! I've been very careful to NEVER ask my girls to "help out" with the responsibilities of having a baby in the home. I never wanted them to resent having a big family because they were asked to "help" with the baby all the time...So...this ends up having the opposite results: They ALWAYS WANT TO HELP WITH THE BABY!!! Today, I found Julia changing her diaper (which she knows she's not suppose to do..that is a Mommy job). She just smiled and said, "but I really want to learn how to do it"!! At field day, they want to carry her around themselves...they LOVE to all dress alike, they want me to bring her up to eat lunch with them at school because they are instant super stars when LL is around. They kiss and hug on her CONSTANTLY. It just truly couldn't have gone any better....There was SERIOUSLY never ONE hiccup!! Everyone LOVED their new baby sister and she loved them...that's the WHOLE story!!! :)

THE HUBBY...Well, the hubby instantly loved and bonded with her too. I called him from Africa saying, "Well, she's not going to go to you...we've really bonded here and be prepared when she cries when you hold her." Well, the hubby's one request was that HE wanted to carry her through the gates to the family at the airport since he didn't go on the trip to get her....Well, she WENT RIGHT TO HIM and SMILED AT HIM!! WHAT!!!!! Ok, and she has seriously LOVED him from that day!! She has ALWAYS lit up when he entered the room....AND, NOW she screams and runs straight for him when he comes home from work in the afternoon. She reaches for him and smiles from ear to ear when he's holding her.....AGAIN...uneventful!! Our lives were already busy with 4 little ones...and well...going to #5 just didn't make a difference. LL has always gone to bed early, George stays up late..and well, Daddy and I go on NO SLEEP at all!! We are some SERIOUS night owls and we can spend 3 or 4 hours a night AWAKE with out kids AWAKE!! We go on VERY little sleep...drink lots of coffee together..and well, smile and embrace a new day!!! That's how we make it work!!! :)
So...there you have it....I represent the family that LOVED our international adoption and had an EASY and SMOOTH experience with it. With all the negative stories you can find out there..I want to be the POSITIVE ONE!! I want people to know that IT CAN BE EASY...and YES, you can LOVE your adopted child the same as your bio kids..and YES, you can spread the love and attention equally between 5 little ones and make them ALL feel special...and YES, at the end of every day, we PRAISE and THANK GOD for sending us down this road...because it was the BEST thing to happen to us all....IN THE END...ONE YEAR LATER....WE'VE ALL WON HERE!!!

Happy Thursday to you all (and fyi...next post in the series..the one i've been asked the most...HOW DO I SUCCESSFULLY PARENT 5 CHILDREN AT ONCE..WHAT ARE YOUR TRICKS.....just an fyi) kj

Just Some Cuteness....

My friend Karen stopped by our neighborhood Memorial Day Pool Party yesterday...She's busy working on our 1 year home video and she snapped a few pics of my LL while at the pool with us yesterday!!! Just couldn't resist sharing....

And, she wants to remind EVERYONE to get those family pics in to us in the next FEW days cause she's setting a deadline for the 5th so she can start putting this video together.....THANK YOU ALL for all the INCREDIBLE pics we've gotten so far of your fams!! I SOOOO love seeing them!! And, if anyone is wondering WHAT I'm talking about....My friend karen who made us our first video, is making us a 1 year home video and she's going to include ALL the pics of families that have been influenced, touched, or sent over the edge to adopt by our LL, video, adoption, etc. You can send your pic to weloveourlucy@gmail.com if interested!!

***Thanks everyone...and Happy Tuesday to you all, kj