The last 7-ish months have been a blurr. Lots more crazy in the house since the girls came. We went from having "older" kids 8, 13, 16 to having a 3 and 5-year-old around (now 4 and 6) and that brought our parenting journey to a screeching halt! We went from semi-smooth sailing to bumpy back roads. It's taken us back to a time/place that we haven't been in so long that we don't even remember what we did "back then". It's kinda funny and kinda not. The amount of daily conflict in our house has tripled. I feel like my primary job is a court appointed mediator, in a bad divorce, with crazy people who refuse to give in and who can't be reasoned with. It's quite tiring!
Having little ones around who did not come from me is scary. I take for granted all the things the boys "know" because we raised them, and all that the girls don't. For instance, don't touch outlets, or hot things on the stove, or try to break up a dog fight, or open the door when someone knocks, or put things you found on the ground in your mouth, and on and on and on. There are plenty of times I want to say "You know better than that" but the truth is they don't.
People have asked "Is it everything you ever imagined?" Well, not exactly. I imagined girls to be delicate little creatures who don't delight in bodily functions like boys do or fight with each other or act like wild animals. I've learned that girls are really no different than boys, just slightly more dramatic and manipulative. They are crazy and full of energy and the boys have met their match. They remind me of the days when Jon was little - always have them in your sight and don't leave scissors laying around!! One afternoon, Kendy (the youngest) had one of those Barrel of Monkey games, except a miniature one, on the floor in her room. The moneys were out so just the barrel was there. I came in and noticed it and that the floor was a little wet so I asked her about it. She retracted faster than a turtle, a given that something not good is about to come out. Her sister was quick to give her up and told me it was pee. What!!! Apparently she had to go the night before and went in the tiny, little cup. Seriously... she's got skills to be able to pee in something so small, I'll give her that but the bathroom is right outside their door. She is Jon all over again, who I vaguely remember peeing through the screen of his bedroom window once. She's a handful for sure. A few days ago she told me that she felt something crawl in her ear. I said it was probably water since she just got out of the shower. She started to cry so I got my glasses and a flashlight just to make her feel better. I wound up pulling out a rather nice sized piece of foam that was way down in there. I think I'm going to get her a nanny.....
But seriously, they are great and we are happy to have them. When they first met us, they called us "Abuela and Abuelo", grandma and grandpa. It was cute but slightly prophetic because that's exactly how we feel sometimes, way too old to be doing this!
They are biological sisters and appear to be from the caribbean side of Guatemala. There is a population over there of people with African dissent so they don't look very Guatemalan. They've got the afro hair and dark skin. We don't know exact details but they were given up by their grandmother because their mother was not able to care for them. It's kinda sad. But, they are with us now and we trust God that this is how their story goes.
