Book Ends and Transition

We have a teen and a toddler creating the book ends in our family. I have been so behind in jotting down our family triumphs and tribulations in part because of the exciting journey of raising these two and of course everyone in between.
LuLu & James

This morning I woke up early to see James off. He is in Jr high now, seventh grade, and leaves an hour before the rest of the kids. He is self sufficient and we rarely get up with him but today I just wanted connection time. I made him waffles and hot cocoa and got to hear a bit about school, his week and winning the basketball championship in Duluth this past weekend. He gave me a big bear hug before he left. Almost the same size as mom and the doc said he has just started growing! He hugged me and said, "Thanks for everything mom, love you" and heads out into the cold morning to walk the couple blocks to his bus stop.

In a big family it is rare to have quiet one on one time, it is also rare to have mom wait on you. That said all the kids are so grateful and expressive with their love and it makes all the hard work it takes to raise a big brood doable for me.

This has been the best start to a school year we have ever had with our eldest, I think more responsibility and independence has made him think about what kind of man he wants to be (other than on the court, watch out he ain't pretty and his manners go out the door, just saying) and his role in the family.

The book ends continue to have an amazing bond. We had a rare date night (we have GOT to get back in the habit of getting out)! And James babysat the crew as usual. We got home and he was passed out next to Lucy with a barbie on his head and hand resting on LuLu's back as she slept. He has already said he will come home from whatever college he attends to see her play games or have school concerts, he visited her nursery school group, well all the kids did, before Lucy started.

LuLu at Children's Circle Waldorf 
The new house!

We have had a massive time of transition. The children all started new schools. Lucy a Waldorf nursery group, Daisy, Mark, Nate, Mickey, John and Annie a new neighborhood elementary and James the local Junior high. We also moved and are attempting to sell our old (lovely) home now. There are moments of stress and balance each day. The new school was the right choice for us and the children have made their way very gracefully and happily into the new friendships and classrooms. The new house gives us more family and personal space and makes daily tasks simply more manageable, like cooking and laundry.
Daisy is Thankful for her dolls
Halloween 2013
Nate & Mark celebrate being 9 & 8 with mama

As we move into this Thanksgiving week I am reminded to focus on the amazing gifts of each of our kids. How raising children is really raising people you want to hang out with for life, and to focus on the joy not on the stress as we kick off our holiday season.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Vulnerability and Educational Moments...In the Grocery Store!

Image
I had an aquatience last week remind me I had a lot of children, and said she was hesitant to celebrate our family because it seemed like too much .  This was a chance run in on friday. For those of you who know me, know how much I struggle with that assessment. Girls with eating disorders often say: "I feel like too much" kids who have behavioral problems know people say they are "too much" and big families are often seen as really neat from a distance but too much . First, everyone has their own too much threshold. It is ok that my passion is not yours! Spending all day making Kombucha like one of my fiends is too much for me, or singing in a show, but I am able to celebrate this difference without judging this difference.  Welcoming children into our home with a 100% chance of heartbreak (sadness over them leaving or sadness someone I love is loosing a birth parent) is not for everyone! My response to negativity is very often to retreat, get off social media, tr
Read more

Veterans Day~ What to Do & How to Talk to Kids!

Image
Today as we celebrate Veterans day, I wanted to talk to the kids about both what it means to serve and how we can help our troops. Having family serve in the military can be a source of fear and pride. The kids do not have immediate family abroad but have heard from their Grandfathers and family friends about both war and leadership serving in the armed forces. We made a list of what WE could do from home. ~The kids' school has a program to send care packages to the troops. Shop, Ship and Share has lists of helpful things to buy and send to the troops. We got beef jerky, sunflower seeds and baby wipes for the kids to bring in to school for the program. Many locations participate, google to find locally! http://www.minnesotanationalguard.org/press_room/e-zine/articles/index.php?item=4518 ~ http://www.operationgratitude.com Check out for more ideas and programs happening to support our troops. ~Sending Halloween Candy to the troops, google the closest locations. We found a
Read more

Foster Care and Parenting, What is in a Number

Image
We welcomed eight children into our home between March 2020 and today, we have had twenty five children placed as foster children since 2015, and an additional five as respite placements. These numbers look so bland on paper. Thirty children have been part of our daily living in the last six years, we have nine of our own children. In putting some thoughts on paper about what these numbers mean, it boils down to acceptance and hard work.  If anyone is new to the Otis family speak, "our own" is a loaded term. We have five biological children and four adopted children. Early on one of our sons told us the power of the question "which ones are your own?" And the fact that I answered without hesitation all those years ago, "they are all our children" from birth or adoption, feeling fully accepted and claimed has become the way we walk in this family. This does not take away the respect and open conversation about birth families, first families and sacrifice. F
Read more