have to start by thanking EVERYONE who prayed for us this weekend.
seriously, thank you so much.

i was soooo nervous all day sunday (i think i ate half of the bowl of the kids' halloween candy that afternoon) about giving the testimony, but the moment we stepped inside the church i felt perfectly peaceful.
i was able to stand in front of a crowd of mostly strangers and re-tell our adoption story. we laughed and cried together as i re-visited all that God had done to basically drop a baby into our laps. PRAISE HIM. it was so good to remember.
and He was so good to help me through something i did not think i could do.
thanks so much for your encouragement and prayers!!

and one other amazing thing-
my sister mentioned to me on friday that her church was hosting a post-adoption seminar on saturday.
i have definitely been feeling the need for more knowledge and practical ideas for discipline and affection when it comes to raising neiko.
so i rearranged my saturday and found a sitter (thanks katie!!) so that i could go.

and i am so glad i did.

it was a wonderful day of encouragement and support- and i learned so much.
i had the opportunity to talk with one of the speakers afterwards and he had so much wisdom to pass on. such a blessing. and now i get to be connected with a group of adoptive moms who meet monthly. wonderful.

still waiting on an address from birth mom. i think i've asked at least 5 times. i don't want to annoy her but we really want to get things going!!!!!!

while we are on the subject of neiko, he definitely says, "don't throw!" right after he throws something :) so funny. and he is just starting to try to say the other kids' names.
and he is playing better with them. a little less destructive, getting into things a little less, throwing things a little less, and playing with toys a little better.
i'm learning that disruptions to our routine just really throw him off. which is unfortunate because i am TERRIBLE with routine. and with 5 kids it is hard to keep what little routine we have.
and now with the holidays coming up.........
crazy.
we invited our goddaughter and her mother to come stay with us for thanksgiving, and we are really excited to have them.
and then after that, we are going to do our best at keeping the christmas chaos to a minimum.
i think i say that every year, but this year i really mean it ;)

.....secretly hoping that dave, neiko, and i will be in arizona around christmas. or shortly after!