After 22+ years of wearing contacts and glasses, today I will be undergoing LASIK surgery. While statistics say everything is going to be fine and my vision will be perfect, there is a chance as with any surgery that the worst may happen. The worst being blindness in one or both eyes. So I wanted to take a quick minute to write to Abigail and Tai just in case the worst does happen.
Abigail, you are an amazing treasure of God. Your smile lights up every room and your laugh is contagious. I love the way you make faces, especially when singing "No more monkeys jumping on the bed!" You are so smart and when I'm at work I just can't wait to get home to spend time playing in your room or on the playset outside with you. Your spirit for helping others is truly inspiring and I hope you never lose that.
Tai, you are a true blessing from God. You are changing so much every day, trying to walk and learning to say different sounds that almost come out as words. Your smile is infectious with those two dimples and eight teeth. Although you cry when left alone, you always show your affection thru hugs when picked up and it really does show how much you love being a part of our family.
I pray that my surgery today goes well and that I'm posting more regularly in the future.
God bless,
Jerry
Lilypie Fourth Birthday tickers
Lilypie Third Birthday tickers
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
Thursday, March 1, 2012
It's been WAY too LONG....
Ok, so it has been months since our last post. Between the holidays and traveling plus 2 little ones it has been so busy. That is a poor excuse but it is all I got. Life is a bit crazy but with each crazy moment there are 59 happy, fun ones. This mama is tired but so happy and blessed. My arms are almost always full with at least one of the kiddos. Both of them would rather be carried then walk or crawl so that leaves my arms full! What a great "problem" to have, right? All that to say, I don't get much time to actually type on the computer and/or blog. It is a new month and instead of sitting on the couch watching tv I thought I would finally blog. Let's see....how can I catch up?
We left off right before Thanksgiving....We went to my parent's place for Thanksgiving and visited with all my family. Tai was busy moving around as usual. He was a bit fussy and struggled with his sleep but right after Thanksgiving he cut 5 teeth! Yes, 5 teeth. Poor guy. Abigail did great and loved spending time with Mimi & Granddaddy and all the other grandparents/cousins/aunt&uncles.
December highlights: The kids and I went on a short road trip to Round Rock to meet my mom/dad for Mom's birthday on the 17th. That was fun and the kids did well in the car plus we got to do a little Christmas shopping. The next week we packed up and drove to Arkansas for Christmas. We had prepared for this journey by telling everyone we knew to PRAY for us! Poor Tai is not a great traveler and really does not like being in his carseat for more than an hour but the prayers worked because he did great in the car. Abigail did pretty well but she got antsy the last 2 hours of the 8 hour trip. We must have listened to her "music" cd a hundred times! The wheels on the bus go round and round.....this little light of mine...abc...itsy bitsy spider... The list goes on and on and on...and she knows every word. But we made it there safely and had a great time with Jerry's siblings and mom. Tai again didn't sleep well but we managed and all the family pitched in to help. There were 4 kids under 4 years old. It was crazy but so much fun to see everyone. Miss them so much!! Christmas morning was precious. All 4 kids attempted to sit in front of the tree for a picture...um...that is really difficult to do. Gifts were exchanged and for the most part all 4 kids played well together.
New year's eve....don't remember...probably fell asleep early...but Tai and I were up to watch some of the festivities on tv. He woke up for a bottle right around midnight. Stinker!
January 7th weekend we traveled to my parents house to celebrate Christmas with them. It was fun to see the kids open their gifts. Tai is moving and pulling up on everything so he had a great time exploring. I am learning real fast that little boys like to explore and EAT everything. Oh boy! Abigail had fun going with Granddaddy to feed the cows and give Noodle (miniature donkey) some crackers. She got to ride in the back of Gdaddy's truck with mommy and daddy and go for a ride in the pasture. (don't worry it was very slow and safe... :) One of their many toys was a red wagon. It is so cute to see them ride together. Abigail holds Tai and off they go. They also got a huge kitchen for Abigail's room. We "eat" cookies and "drink" tea all the time now. Tai just tries to eat the fake cookies and cake.
So that was our Christmas celebration. OH....and the kids got a swingset/slide/playset from us this year. A friend of ours sold us theirs. It is great! Pictures to follow...tomorrow i hope.
February Update: Tai is standing on his own for about 10 seconds. No steps yet but he crawls about 100 miles/hr. Not really but boy can he move. He is even faster when he has something ready to put in his mouth. He has a great personality. He is sleeping better (Thank God!) which means Mommy is sleeping better which means things around the house are better. Hhmmmm....why is that? He sleeps about 4-6 hours at a time overnight. Yes, that is better believe me. During the day he is in a great mood as long as he is near Mama and able to crawl around. His smile is awesome with 2 huge dimples and his hair is getting SO curly. What a flirt he is! He is saying Dada, baba, and occassionally Mama when he is fussy. He just started waving hi and byebye....it is so cute! Tai eats like a piggy...table food and baby food now. Of course he still likes his bottle too. Abigail........oh what a smart thing she is. She can count 1 to 10 in english and spanish and she has a vocabulary that is amazing. It is so hard to believe that we have actual conversations all day long. real ones too. She is like a sponge. I rarely have to sit down with her and teach her anything. She just learns it. She loves to sing songs and her favorite one is Jesus loves me. She loves to read. In fact, she reads herself to sleep every night. There is something so special about how she grabs a book and comes and plops down in my lap. So yes she is super smart and hilarious but let's not forget that she is 2 years old. Oh man can she throw a fit when she wants to..Holy cow! It is tough but thankfully it is not too often. She is also potty training and doing pretty well at it. There have been a couple surprises when she takes her diaper off without my permission. No accidents on the floor just a little naked 2 year old running around. I can't help but smile about it right?
well...that is all the time i have now but i hope to be back real soon. I want to share our most recent bedtime ritual. It is very sweet. and I will include some pictures too...
until then God bless!
love,Jenny
We left off right before Thanksgiving....We went to my parent's place for Thanksgiving and visited with all my family. Tai was busy moving around as usual. He was a bit fussy and struggled with his sleep but right after Thanksgiving he cut 5 teeth! Yes, 5 teeth. Poor guy. Abigail did great and loved spending time with Mimi & Granddaddy and all the other grandparents/cousins/aunt&uncles.
December highlights: The kids and I went on a short road trip to Round Rock to meet my mom/dad for Mom's birthday on the 17th. That was fun and the kids did well in the car plus we got to do a little Christmas shopping. The next week we packed up and drove to Arkansas for Christmas. We had prepared for this journey by telling everyone we knew to PRAY for us! Poor Tai is not a great traveler and really does not like being in his carseat for more than an hour but the prayers worked because he did great in the car. Abigail did pretty well but she got antsy the last 2 hours of the 8 hour trip. We must have listened to her "music" cd a hundred times! The wheels on the bus go round and round.....this little light of mine...abc...itsy bitsy spider... The list goes on and on and on...and she knows every word. But we made it there safely and had a great time with Jerry's siblings and mom. Tai again didn't sleep well but we managed and all the family pitched in to help. There were 4 kids under 4 years old. It was crazy but so much fun to see everyone. Miss them so much!! Christmas morning was precious. All 4 kids attempted to sit in front of the tree for a picture...um...that is really difficult to do. Gifts were exchanged and for the most part all 4 kids played well together.
New year's eve....don't remember...probably fell asleep early...but Tai and I were up to watch some of the festivities on tv. He woke up for a bottle right around midnight. Stinker!
January 7th weekend we traveled to my parents house to celebrate Christmas with them. It was fun to see the kids open their gifts. Tai is moving and pulling up on everything so he had a great time exploring. I am learning real fast that little boys like to explore and EAT everything. Oh boy! Abigail had fun going with Granddaddy to feed the cows and give Noodle (miniature donkey) some crackers. She got to ride in the back of Gdaddy's truck with mommy and daddy and go for a ride in the pasture. (don't worry it was very slow and safe... :) One of their many toys was a red wagon. It is so cute to see them ride together. Abigail holds Tai and off they go. They also got a huge kitchen for Abigail's room. We "eat" cookies and "drink" tea all the time now. Tai just tries to eat the fake cookies and cake.
So that was our Christmas celebration. OH....and the kids got a swingset/slide/playset from us this year. A friend of ours sold us theirs. It is great! Pictures to follow...tomorrow i hope.
February Update: Tai is standing on his own for about 10 seconds. No steps yet but he crawls about 100 miles/hr. Not really but boy can he move. He is even faster when he has something ready to put in his mouth. He has a great personality. He is sleeping better (Thank God!) which means Mommy is sleeping better which means things around the house are better. Hhmmmm....why is that? He sleeps about 4-6 hours at a time overnight. Yes, that is better believe me. During the day he is in a great mood as long as he is near Mama and able to crawl around. His smile is awesome with 2 huge dimples and his hair is getting SO curly. What a flirt he is! He is saying Dada, baba, and occassionally Mama when he is fussy. He just started waving hi and byebye....it is so cute! Tai eats like a piggy...table food and baby food now. Of course he still likes his bottle too. Abigail........oh what a smart thing she is. She can count 1 to 10 in english and spanish and she has a vocabulary that is amazing. It is so hard to believe that we have actual conversations all day long. real ones too. She is like a sponge. I rarely have to sit down with her and teach her anything. She just learns it. She loves to sing songs and her favorite one is Jesus loves me. She loves to read. In fact, she reads herself to sleep every night. There is something so special about how she grabs a book and comes and plops down in my lap. So yes she is super smart and hilarious but let's not forget that she is 2 years old. Oh man can she throw a fit when she wants to..Holy cow! It is tough but thankfully it is not too often. She is also potty training and doing pretty well at it. There have been a couple surprises when she takes her diaper off without my permission. No accidents on the floor just a little naked 2 year old running around. I can't help but smile about it right?
well...that is all the time i have now but i hope to be back real soon. I want to share our most recent bedtime ritual. It is very sweet. and I will include some pictures too...
until then God bless!
love,Jenny
Sunday, November 20, 2011
How life changes in 2 years
Today is Abigail's GOTCHA DAY! 2 years ago today we brought our baby girl home and started our life as parents. Who would have thought then what would happen over the next two years. We have a lot of highlights just in this weekend. Yesterday we met with Tai's birthfamily in College Station, which is about the mid-point between us. It was a great visit, we ate at Chuy's then went over to the mall play area and let the two older kids run and play while we shared Tai with them. I'm sure Jenny will post more details about it, but I am glad that they are doing well and are still very happy in their decision.
Back to the two year theme, it seems like our life changing/family tree changing moments tend to take two years to accomplish. Getting out of debt took us two years and two weeks. Growing our family from Abigail's GOTCHA DAY to Tai's finalization day took us four days under two years. And we only had a three month break in between those two huge milestones. So I can only wonder what two year journey we will be starting next.
To Abigail & Tai - I can not begin to express to you how blessed I am to be your father. You are both truly amazing in your own ways. There are not enough words to describe the joy that you both have brought to your mother and I. I can't wait to be a part of your milestones as you grow. You are amazing children and I love you both more than you will ever know....Dadda
In Christ,
Jerry
Back to the two year theme, it seems like our life changing/family tree changing moments tend to take two years to accomplish. Getting out of debt took us two years and two weeks. Growing our family from Abigail's GOTCHA DAY to Tai's finalization day took us four days under two years. And we only had a three month break in between those two huge milestones. So I can only wonder what two year journey we will be starting next.
To Abigail & Tai - I can not begin to express to you how blessed I am to be your father. You are both truly amazing in your own ways. There are not enough words to describe the joy that you both have brought to your mother and I. I can't wait to be a part of your milestones as you grow. You are amazing children and I love you both more than you will ever know....Dadda
In Christ,
Jerry
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Adoption Day!!
Yesterday as a wonderful day! Our family is officially a "family of four". After 6 months of home visits and evaluations we legally, in front of the judge and the state of Texas, adopted our son Tai Mikel Snider. What a wonderful blessing he is! God chose him especially for us and we are in awe of what our beautiful family has turned out to be.
We were at that same courthouse a year and a half ago with Abigail. I woke us yesterday morning feeling prepared thinking "We've done this before...we know what to do." We walked through security and went up to the 3rd floor. The hallway was full of adoptive families. I walked passed all of their smiling faces and beautiful children. Still...i was calm and focused on "mommy tasks". Then it was our turn to go into the courtroom. Immediately I was filled with emotion. This was IT! Our family would finally be OURS...complete! No more paperwork, no more technicalities, no more evaluations. We always knew these 2 babies were ours but it is incredibly nice for the State to recognize it and for it to be officially on paper. I was surprised by more emotions. I was so focused on Mommy duties and diaper issues that the emotions snuck up on me. Jerry and I looked at each other and just smiled with tears in our eyes. We did it! Eleven and a half years of marriage, years of infertility, doubts about our family's future, adoption disruptions, and a lot of waiting and praying... yesterday..all that was a distant memory because our family was complete. It was a wonderful feeling. It is only by the Grace of God and His promise that we are a family. There is no other explanation for it all. HE kept His promise and gave us the desire of our hearts.
My mom sent me a copy of her daily bible study from yesterday and look at how God was speaking directly to us.
************************
You Were Planned
TODAY’S SCRIPTURE
"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you…"
(Jeremiah 1:5, NIV)
TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria
What an amazing thought: God knew you before you were even born! He saw your unformed substance and said, "I have a purpose for this life. I have good plans for them!" Then He breathed His life into you and sent you through your mother and father. They may have had issues, but that doesn't have to stop you from becoming all that God intended you to be. You have been handpicked by Almighty God to be here at this time in history!
Sometimes we hear parents say, "We weren't expecting this child. They were a surprise. They were an accident." No, that child may have been a surprise to you, but they weren't a surprise to Almighty God. No child can be born without God breathing His life into them. You may think, "Well, Joel, I was unwanted. I was an unplanned pregnancy." No, you wouldn't be here if God didn't give life to your seed.
In God's eyes, there is no such thing as being illegitimate. Remember, He knew you before you were ever born! Find confidence in His love knowing that you are a person of destiny, and you are part of His mighty plan!
A PRAYER FOR TODAY
Father, thank You for choosing me before I was ever born. Thank You for knowing me and revealing Yourself to me. I trust that You are working in my life today, even when I can't see it. I stand in faith knowing that You have a mighty plan for me in Jesus' name. Amen.
— Joel & Victoria Osteen
*****************************
Wow!!!I plan to print this out and put it in Tai's memory book! How amazing is that???
Thank you for all your prayers and for believing in our family. Those prayers are a huge reason we are a Family of Four.
(pictures will follow soon......)
In HIm,
Jenny
We were at that same courthouse a year and a half ago with Abigail. I woke us yesterday morning feeling prepared thinking "We've done this before...we know what to do." We walked through security and went up to the 3rd floor. The hallway was full of adoptive families. I walked passed all of their smiling faces and beautiful children. Still...i was calm and focused on "mommy tasks". Then it was our turn to go into the courtroom. Immediately I was filled with emotion. This was IT! Our family would finally be OURS...complete! No more paperwork, no more technicalities, no more evaluations. We always knew these 2 babies were ours but it is incredibly nice for the State to recognize it and for it to be officially on paper. I was surprised by more emotions. I was so focused on Mommy duties and diaper issues that the emotions snuck up on me. Jerry and I looked at each other and just smiled with tears in our eyes. We did it! Eleven and a half years of marriage, years of infertility, doubts about our family's future, adoption disruptions, and a lot of waiting and praying... yesterday..all that was a distant memory because our family was complete. It was a wonderful feeling. It is only by the Grace of God and His promise that we are a family. There is no other explanation for it all. HE kept His promise and gave us the desire of our hearts.
My mom sent me a copy of her daily bible study from yesterday and look at how God was speaking directly to us.
************************
You Were Planned
TODAY’S SCRIPTURE
"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you…"
(Jeremiah 1:5, NIV)
TODAY’S WORD from Joel and Victoria
What an amazing thought: God knew you before you were even born! He saw your unformed substance and said, "I have a purpose for this life. I have good plans for them!" Then He breathed His life into you and sent you through your mother and father. They may have had issues, but that doesn't have to stop you from becoming all that God intended you to be. You have been handpicked by Almighty God to be here at this time in history!
Sometimes we hear parents say, "We weren't expecting this child. They were a surprise. They were an accident." No, that child may have been a surprise to you, but they weren't a surprise to Almighty God. No child can be born without God breathing His life into them. You may think, "Well, Joel, I was unwanted. I was an unplanned pregnancy." No, you wouldn't be here if God didn't give life to your seed.
In God's eyes, there is no such thing as being illegitimate. Remember, He knew you before you were ever born! Find confidence in His love knowing that you are a person of destiny, and you are part of His mighty plan!
A PRAYER FOR TODAY
Father, thank You for choosing me before I was ever born. Thank You for knowing me and revealing Yourself to me. I trust that You are working in my life today, even when I can't see it. I stand in faith knowing that You have a mighty plan for me in Jesus' name. Amen.
— Joel & Victoria Osteen
*****************************
Wow!!!I plan to print this out and put it in Tai's memory book! How amazing is that???
Thank you for all your prayers and for believing in our family. Those prayers are a huge reason we are a Family of Four.
(pictures will follow soon......)
In HIm,
Jenny
Saturday, November 5, 2011
Busy month!!
What a busy month for us! So much has happened since the last post.
*Abigail turned 2 years old and celebrated 4 times with different family members & friends. Lots of cake!!
*We went to the rodeo twice where Abigail had a corn dog, funnel cake and cotton candy.*Tai was dedicated at church
*Both kiddos were presented at the Hope Gala (adoption agency fundraiser)
*We went to Jenny's family reunion and surprised some family members with our new "addition". :)
*Jenny had a birthday.*Abigail moved into a big girl bed
*We visited Jerry's Papaw at the cemetary and introduced Tai to Papaw.
*Halloween: Little monkey and a Ladybug (pictures coming soon...)
*Pumpkin patch
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