Why Do I Write A Blog?

Why do I Write A Blog?

When I first started this blog, we had 4 kids under the age of 4. I think I needed an outlet, or I was going to lose my mind. Blogging is much like journaling, except really really public. Haha!

Around the time I started blogging, I was (still am) passionate about the topic of health (specifically vaccines) and felt like the whole world needed to know. I learned very quickly that the whole world did not want to know. But many people did.

Quickly the blog grew. It started being shared on sites like Dr. Mercola, Gaia Health, & National Vaccine Information Center. I suddenly had 15,000 monthly viewers and had no idea how to keep up with the blog. So I just did the best I could.

I write a lot about health and have covered every topic from fevers and ear aches to preventing and fighting the flu to common childhood illnesses. But mostly I tackle vaccines. I did a series on polio, wrote a few whooping cough pieces that went viral, shared about measles, compared vaccinated to unvaccinated and much more (see vaccine tab)… I also write about food, health, sugar, children’s snacks. And all those things that make people call you a “crunchy mama”.

One of the most eye opening posts I’ve written in regards to children’s health, is titled “Is This The Best We Can Offer?” I wrote it two years ago and sadly, the statistics I shared have only gotten worse. Seriously? What are we doing?

The autism community captured my heart and I started a series called “Lioness Arising” where I highlighted parents of vaccine injured children. And the blog really fell into a grove and found it’s niche. I adore this series. Please read about these amazing mommas and their precious children.

This blog earned the respects of The Thinking Moms Revolution (out of nothing but a mutual love and respect for one another) with a post titled Snooki vs. Jessica Gianelloni: American Heroines and with that article came many many followers of families with vaccine injured children.

I wrote a piece called “To Be Honored” where I shared in a nutshell what The Thinking Moms Revolution means to me. And what a full circle moment it was after a 7 1/2 year journey of vaccine research, to be honored.

This blog then became somewhat of an odd mix of my personal life (children and everyday life) and my passionate life (vaccine research, health, etc…). I had a variety of followers and could never keep up with the comments and questions. I also experienced a wide range of comments: Let’s just say people either love this blog. Or they hate it.

Our family blog received the honor of being listed as one of the resources for the Chalkboard Campaign with my post called “I Hope You’ve Done Your Research” and the monthly readers just kept growing. The growth was amazing and at times overwhelming.

I’ve never followed blogging rules. I’ve never taken a class on how to market my blog or “choose an audience”. I didn’t start writing with a specific audience in mind. I just wrote when I felt like writing and have always shared my heart and my passions.

And then I went to Uganda for the first time last summer and fell in love with God’s children: the orphan. And I started blogging about orphans and our shared our entire adoption journey. So then the mix of topics became even more diverse.  Health, Vaccines, Family, Adoption, & Orphans. Oh my…

Eventually, through the topics I wrote about, adoption world and vaccine world merged. Let’s just say adoption world and vaccine world are separate worlds for a reason. It makes me sad, but those two worlds do not see eye to eye. So before I left for my 2^nd trip to Uganda, I shut the blog down. I had to protect my adoptive child.

I’ve re-opened our blog, but I’m really wondering why. Why do I Write A Blog? Do I really want to keep writing? Part of me wants to shut it down and be done with blogging.

I don’t know who my audience is. I’m not concerned really. But why do I share my life publicly with such a large audience over such a wide range of topics?

I’ve spent a lot of time contemplating, thinking, and praying about whether or not to continue writing this blog.

I know why I write. I write because I’m passionate about certain topics. But why not just write in a personal journal? Why share publically? How do I mix vaccine world and health world and adoption world in a single blog? Or do I just continue being who I am and write about what I originally made this blog to be about: “Gianelloni Family: Life As We Know It”?

Not as anyone else knows it. Life As We Know it.

I’ve never been concerned with blog stats. It’s the daily, weekly, monthly statistics that you receive from blog world. I’m not gonna lie. I was shocked when the cupcake post went viral and reached 12,000 viewers in a few days. I had no idea what was happening. I was shocked when Food and Water: Nope, Vaccines: Yep was featured on Dr. Mercola with millions of viewers. The stats definitely caught my attention. But they didn’t define me. And I won’t let them define me. Blog statistics don’t represent who we are as a family or our personal daily lives. When I started posting more and more about our adoption and less about vaccines & health, the blog stats went down. I didn’t care. I was almost relieved. I just kept writing from my heart.

Blogs evolve. I get that. I am no longer the mom of 4 kids under 4 who is consumed with sharing vaccine research on a regular basis. I am now the mom of 5 kids under 7. 4 biological and 1 adopted.  And I have to first protect them. We already had to remove our bio children’s names from this blog long ago due the controversial nature of the topics I discussed. And seek legal counsel for a disclaimer on the blog.

The Lord is definitely leading me through this blogging journey. I know when I need to lay low on a topic. And I know when I need to shout a certain topic from the roof tops. I will continue to write this blog, as long as I feel like the Lord is leading me through each post with peace and clarity. There is still a lot of truth to share and a lot of glory that God needs to be given…so I will continue to write.

I still want to write about what I am passionate about. Right now those passions include:

1. The health of my children. And all children for that matter. Everything that is ingested and injected into their bodies matters greatly to me.

2. Orphans. Rescuing orphans is very important to me. One child at a time. Our new son is living proof.

3. Adoption. I will continue to share our adoption journey. I will also answer any adoption questions people have. I learned very quickly that adoption world is very secretive and private when it comes to the process. Because of this unspoken rule that you aren’t supposed to publicly discuss the adoption process, the journey sometimes feel very lonely. I made a promise to myself that I would not be one of those people. If you have a question about anything adoption, I will answer it.

4. Jesus. That my children would grow up to love Jesus with all of their heart, mind, body, and soul and that there would never be a day that goes by that they don’t know they are loved and adored by a Heavenly Father.

5. Quietness. Yes, I am desperate for silence. I don’t mind the business of 5 young kids. (Current ages: almost 3, 4, 5, 6, & 7) The physical business is tolerable. It’s like a constant work out. All day. It’s the noise that gets to me. Constant noise. Even when they are all getting along. One might be singing. One might be humming. One might be reading outloud for homework. And the other two are playing super heroes. It’s loud. And we live in 1,300 sq. feet. Don’t get me wrong…after my time in Uganda…our space is mansion size. My husband & I just returned from 3 weeks living in Uganda with 7 orphans, 5 adults, and anywhere between 5-20 guest orphans on any given day…. in a home much smaller than our home in America.  I am thankful for our home. It’s just loud. And I like quiet. Any suggestions?

Here’s what this blog is NOT:
*Planned, organized, or marketed. I write when something is placed on my heart. I write sporadically. Sometimes twice a week, other times once a month. Who cares? I hate blog rules. This is not a strategic blog with a central theme that looks to grow it’s monthly viewers and gain approval from followers. I guest write for other blogs that do this. This is not that type of blog.

*I have no audience. I probably never will. I cannot cater to only people looking for vaccine research. I cannot cater to sharing every single detail of our adoption journey.  I cannot pretend to be a “health related” blog. This blog is just our family’s life. Some of which I share. Most of which I don’t. And our life is pretty boring and not anywhere near perfect. I care a lot about health. A lot. But I am nowhere near perfect.  I just brought an orphan home from a 3^rd world country. I am more elated with the convenience that I can heat up coconut oil in 5 seconds in my microwave to rub on his always & chronic ashy skin (anyone with a brown skinned child will understand this dilemma) than I am with the consequences of using a microwave.  I just returned from a country where, for 3 weeks, non-organic food was prepared for us using dirty water, and nasty cooking oil. And I couldn’t have cared less. I knew God’s grace and protection was covering us during our time in Uganda. I was thankful to be in a situation where I had to trust that God is bigger than my own desire to eat an organic, pure, and privileged diet. I experienced a major shift in my thinking. Don’t get me wrong. I’m still probably considered “a health nut” by the majority. So much so, that our new son thinks Kombucha is “soda” and I don’t mind lying to him about it

*I will not publically share what our family does in relation to the vaccine topic. Please do not ask me if I vaccinate my children or if/when we will vaccinate our adoptive child. I will never answer that publically. Not because I don’t want to. But because I have to use discretion and be wise when it comes to my children. I will never jeopardize their safety.

* I will not share my adoptive sons past history. When he is old enough to share his story, he may choose to do so.  And for now, I want to keep our 3 week adoption journey in Uganda private. It was too beautiful and magical to put into words. Maybe one day I’ll try.

So here’s where I am. I will continue to write when I feel led to write. One day it may be about the joys of adoption, and another day it may be about some new fake measles outbreak (seriously that just happened in Wales, read here) or how crazy it is that there is a new vaccine for autism. A vaccine for something that was caused a vaccine. Imagine that? Ha! Or the newest study out of Poland where the researchers concluded that Vaccines Do Irreparable Harm.

Or I might share pictures from one of the children’s b-day parties. Boring, I know right?

I don’t really know.

I do know that this blog doesn’t fit into a box. Or a category. And I’m not really sure why I write it.

So if you follow this blog. I thank-you. I know I don’t always get around to answering comments and questions. I’m a really really bad blogger. But from the bottom of my heart. I thank-you.

This is Our Life….As We Know It!

With love,
The Gianelloni 7

 

 

HOME

About a month ago, I set our blog to private as we left for Uganda, East Africa to bring our son home. We were gone for about 3 weeks and have been home 1 week.
Our son is now home. Thank-you Jesus!

If you are a fb friend, you know that I shared our journey in Uganda on a daily basis. I shared pictures, stories, updates, & prayer requests. We had an amazing army of prayer warriors praying for with us and for us. And with each update, we all celebrated together! Thank-you for sharing our journey with us!

We were welcomed home with a huge homecoming at the airport and have settled right in to our new normal. Daily life with 5 young children is constant.  Life right now is full of joy and busy. There is no place like home.

The transition has been amazing and we are all feeling very blessed. As I begin to settle in, I will start to write and share more on this blog. I hope to share pictures and stories from our 3 week journey in Africa, as well as share my thoughts on our adoption journey and process. I have always been an open book and very transparent, but for now I’m enjoying this special time as a new family unit and feel like privacy is much needed.

Here are a few pics of our first few moments together as a family of 7.

It’s good to be home.
Love, The Gianelloni 7

Light it up True…

April is Autism Awareness Month.
And today, April 2nd  is World Autism Awareness Day!

I can’t think of a better way to “celebrate” this day, than to provide awareness behind what is really happening through these “awareness” campaigns.

Last week the new Autism numbers were released: 1 in 50.

And quickly after that, perfectly, brilliantly, and exactly on time…just days after the new 1 in 50 autism numbers were released, the CDC released a “new study” that shows (again) vaccines don’t cause autism. It was a bogus study that was critiqued perfectly by Dr. Brian Hooker, PhD scientist. You can read the critique here: Can We Trust the CDC Claim that There is No Link Between Vaccines and Autism?

What I find so interesting is that the same organization that celebrates World Autism Awareness Day through their catchy campaign “Light It Up Blue”, is the same exact organization that just funded this latest CDC study. This organization is called Autism Speaks, and sadly the families I know with children with autism, do not in anyway support Autism Speaks. Today, they will not be “lighting it up blue” for their child.

I have not met a single autism parent that does not despise this multi-million dollar organization.

Why?

“It is a leech upon the autism community, sucking resources and walk-a-thon energy away from cash-strapped families struggling to cope. If there was any value in its “awareness” campaign, it has been achieved; Autism Speaks has no apparent further reason for being. It’s delaying progress, deflecting attention from the truth. It’s job, like any other business (or malignancy), is to grow”
–Dan Olmstead, Investigative Reporter and Editor of Age of Autism.

Autism Speaks has wasted 27.4 million dollars on 127 genetic studies since 2006 and are no closer to finding a cause…

If you know the behind-the-scenes details regarding the Autism Speaks foundation, it’s actually quite maddening. Here’s the short version:

Katie Wright is the daughter of the founders of Autism Speaks and the mother of the little boy who was the catalyst for the organization. She’s been extremely vocal and active about what she witnessed happen to her son; vaccine regression into severe autism. She sits on the boards of other organizations because she doesn’t support the very organization created in her own child’s honor. Think about that.

Here is Katie Wright’s comment on the newest Autism Speaks’ study debunking vaccine causation:  “This is just Autism Speaks caving in to the government and Drug Companies… AGAIN!!! They just keep publishing Government funded studies by organizations who get PAID by major Drug Company $$$. Here’s all we need to know… This is a quote from this article:

“The case-control study was led by epidemiologists in the Immunization Safety Office of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).”

The CDC ?? What a joke !

Might as well let pedophiles do a study on Child Pornography !” ~ Katie Wright

The founders of Autism Speaks own daughter.  It’s just plain sad.

And then their was Dr. Sears response to the new study:

“I’m tired of pretend vaccine research. Give me some REAL research. Give AMERICA some real research. Stop playing games and wasting money that should go into real studies.” 

New Study in Journal of Pediatrics Shows Number of Vaccine Antigens Not Associated with Autism Risk

Another waste of money in another attempt to pretend to do research on vaccines and autism. Here’s what the researchers did: They looked at the HMO medical records of 256 kids with autism and 752 kids without autism and counted up the total number of antigens in the vaccines they received as children. They found no difference, and concluded that this provides evidence that the number of vaccines given to a child does not increase the risk of autism. 

I pretty much only have one major criticism of this study. You would probably find the exact same results no matter what group of kids you studied. Pretty much all children in any given span of years receive the exact same number of shot antigens. (By the way, an antigen is simply a protein or sugar germ-related ingredient in a vaccine – some vaccines only have a few, some have many.) Read more about the absurdity of a vaccine study on antigens (HERE)

Virtually all kids WITH autism have had the same shots as kids WITHOUT autism. So, why would it even be useful to study this? You’ll get the same results every time, whether you study 1000 kids or 100,000 kids. They all get the same shots on the same schedule. They would have gotten the same results if they’d studies asthma, cancer, or any other chronic problem. All this study proved is that all the kids in that HMO got about the same vaccines over that 5 year time period. This doesn’t give us any useful data on how vaccines would have or would not have influenced the rate of autism. 

Now, if I were to do a study (and have several million bucks to fund it), here’s how I would look at the question of whether or not an increased number of vaccines relates to an increased risk of autism: I would take a bunch of kids who had all the vaccines on the regular schedule and look at the rate of autism in that group. We know that it’s about 1 in 50 kids. Then I’d take a whole bunch of kids who were only partially vaccinated and look at the rate of autism. I would subdivide the partially vaccinated group into subgroups based on the total number of vaccines given during infancy. I would perhaps have a group that delayed vaccines. And hey, while we’re at it, let’s really go crazy and find a few totally unvaccinated kids just for fun. On the other hand, no. Let’s not. It would be totally unethical to subject a group of totally unvaccinated children to any type of medical research. Ok, back to my study. These data would then give us a true look at autism rates compared to number of vaccines given and the age at which they were given. 

Now THAT would be an interesting study. Unfortunately, it’s just too logical. It’s much better to study things in a confusing and illogical manner so you can get some results that the press can really sink their teeth into. 

So, is anyone really surprised to see the Journal of Pediatrics study? What were you expecting? CDC researchers to publish as study that actually showed an increased risk of autism related to vaccines? The CDC would NEVER simply publish such a study. I doubt anyone would. Anyone at the CDC who published such a study would be fired faster than they could sell their Pharma stock. But I digress. I don’t mean to blast all research. But I’m tired of pretend vaccine research. Give me some REAL research. Give AMERICA some real research. Stop playing games and wasting money that should go into real studies. Parents will keep asking the question until the science behind the research is sound. This study does little to change the minds of worried families”
-Dr. Sears

Lastly, I love the response to the study from Adventures in Autism blog. A very crafty checklist of 5 steps to do at next pediatrician visit:
More Public Relations Nonsense Sold To You As “Science”

It is very sad to me that today, the world will “Light It Up Blue” for a billion dollar organization that does nothing to help the Autism Community. An organization that funds studies to “prove” vaccines don’t cause autism.

Why not instead support The Thinking Mom’s Revolution. Book release this month!

Now that you are aware, let’s Light It Up True!

 

Dear Mom with More than One Child, Let me Tell you What you Don’t See…

This is sort of a Part 2 post: Yesterday I wrote a post answering the question someone asked me: “How Will You Spend Time With All Of Your Kids?”

I referenced an article that has gone viral and has been shared over and over titled:
“Dear Mom On the iPhone; Let me Tell You What You Don’t See Right Now”

I received a lot of comments from other mothers thanking me for addressing the judgment of the Dear Mom On the iPhone article. So I thought I would expand.

I don’t think it was a horrible article. I got the point of it. I think the author may have had a moment of self conviction concerning her own cellphone use. I am ALL for self conviction. Two of the main ways I learn most of my life lessons is through conviction and perspective. However, when you write a self-conviction piece and then title it “Dear Mom”, it suddenly turns into a judgmental piece. Had the author maybe written the letter to herself, it would have let the reader determine if they had the same self-conviction or not.

However, my issue wasn’t really the with the judgmental aspect of the piece. It was that the article portrays the warped view that our culture has deemed is the “role” of a mother.

In keeping with my post from yesterday, and the word ATTENTION (about how does a mommy spend time with multiple kids), let’s keep the exact wording from the Dear Mom on the iPhone article (but change the topic from “iPhone” to “more than one child”. Every word replacing iPhone is bolded) And suddenly we can see the root of the problem with this article.

Dear Mom with More than One Child, Let me tell what you don’t see right now.

I see you over there on the bench, messing with your baby.  It feels good to relax a little while your kids have fun in the sunshine, doesn’t it?  You are doing a great job with your kids, you work hard, you teach them manners, have them do their chores.

But Momma, let me tell you what you don’t see right now…..

Your little girl is spinning round and round, making her dress twirl.  She is such a little beauty queen already, the sun shining behind her hair.  She keeps glancing your way to see if you are watching her.

You aren’t. You can’t because you are changing your babies diaper.

Your little boy keeps shouting, “Mom, MOM watch this!”  I see you acknowledge him, barely glancing his way. But you could only give him a glance, because you were bent down tying one of your other children’s shoes.

He sees that too.  His shoulders slump, but only for a moment, as he finds the next cool thing to do.

Now you are pushing your baby in the swing.  She loves it!  Cooing and smiling with every push.  You don’t see her though, do you?  Your head is bent,  your eyes on one of your other children who is about to fall off the top of the slide and so you absently push the baby in her swing, because you are worried that your son might fall of the slide and you need to keep your eyes on him.

Put your eyes back on your prize…Your kids.

Show them that they are the priority. Wherever you are, be ALL there.  I am not saying it’s not ok to have more than one kid, but they are a time-sucker: User Beware!

Play time at the park will be over before you know it.

The childhood of your children will be gone before you know it.

They won’t always want to come to the park with you, Mommy.  They won’t always spin and twirl to make their new dress swish, they won’t always call out, “WATCH ME!”

There will come a point when they stop trying, stop calling your name, stop bothering to interrupt your attention you give to your other children.

Because they know…

You’ve shown them, all these moments, that their siblings are more important than they are.  They see you interacting with and taking care of their brother and sisters while waiting to pick up other siblings from school, during playtime, at the dinner table, at bedtime…..

I know that’s not true, Mommy.

I know your heart says differently.

But your kids can’t hear your words, Mommy. Your actions are screaming way too loudly.

Can you imagine? The absurdity of the words in this article really shine through when you remove the word iPhone and insert…well anything else that distracts you from giving your children 100% of your attention 24-7.

Here’s what I’m quickly learning about American culture. We start out well-meaning. We want to give our children the WORLD. We want them to feel loved and special. And this is all great and wonderful. Until…we suddenly realize we have raised an entire generation of entitled children who feel overly important. We smother and saturate our children with attention. And it starts at such a young age. The b-day parties that we throw for little girls these days are nauseating. Full blown princess parties that mimic a wedding for a 5 year old. Little girls are raised getting manicures and pedicures starting at age 3. And heaven forbid they twirl in their new dress at the park and we missed it. Are you kidding me?

We are raising our children with a me-me-me mentality. Our children expect to be served. And according to this article, they also deserve our constant attention.

Do children not know how to play by themselves or with each other anymore? Is the role of a mother to be constant playmate, entertainer, cheerleader?

Not in my house. I want to teach my children how to serve, not how to be served.  I want to raise my children with servants hearts. Not asking “what about me?” but to ask “what about others?”

How can we serve the least of these if we raise our children teaching them how to serve only themselves?

I sat at a b-day party for one of my children’s friends last week. It was a precious party. The little girls (age 5) were put in robes and treated to a spa night. They did make-up and hair and nails. They were given dress-up outfits, walked down a runway, and put on a fabulous fashion show. It was a great night. Every little girl left thinking knowning she was the Queen of the Universe.

So yes, with that mindset…an article that makes a mom feel guilty because she is looking at her iPhone instead of watching her children play, yes that sort of article would make me feel like I am failing as a mother.

All I could think about at the b-day party is “what exactly are we raising our children to think is important?” What a rude awakening it is when you grow up and realize that after all, life isn’t about you at all.

Don’t get me wrong, we are all about making our children feel special. We are guilty of it and go overboard at times as well. My husband has spent many late nights cutting out the age they are turning on construction paper to make sure we have atleast 50 of those numbers hanging on every wall in the house when they wake up. The looks on our children’s faces when they wake up and see their new age plastered everywhere, is priceless. They feel special. And we want our children to feel special.

But our culture and society has gone completely overboard. Toddlers and Tiaras? And on the other side of the world, 147 million orphans and toddlers not with tiaras, but dying from malnutrition and malaria. Orphaned by poverty. And what are we doing about it?

We can start teaching our children (yes, even at a young age) that although we love them with all of our hearts, that NO the world does not revolve around them. That NO, I do not have to watch them constantly play, solve all their problems, & provide them with every need/want/request/demand.

And maybe, just maybe….they will grow up knowing that life isn’t really just about them. That really it is about putting OTHERS first. And instead of going to the store to pick out a new toy for themselves, they will want to buy a new toy to send to an orphanage. Or they will go in their closet and realize they have 15 pairs of shoes and their brother waiting for us to bring him home currently doesn’t have a single pair of shoes.

That’s what large families teach. That life does not revolve around just you.

When I bring my children to the park, they are learning that YES mommy loves and adores them, but that NO mommy does not have to watch them play.

This is what judgmental eyes will never see…that a 7 year old little girl is learning what it means to serve others. That when we go to the park, she doesn’t demand my attention….she offers to help me! “Mom, do you need help with the littles at the park today? I know it’s hard for you to keep your eyes on all of us, so I wanted to help you today”.

How Will You Spend Times with ALL of your Kids?

During our adoption journey, we have received an abundance of love, support, and encouragement. I would say about 99.9% of the time.

Rit & I have been in awe over how this journey has brought us closer to friends, restored relationships, have brought others to Christ, and overall we have witnessed humanity at it’s best.

However, there is always the 1%. Those that make the comments or ask you the questions that make you want to cringe. Not that I want to bring attention to those comments/judgments/questions, I just feel that if the 1% is willing to verbally say these things to my face, then obviously more people may feel that way, but just aren’t brave enough to say it out loud.

We’ve been asked a few shocking questions: “Do you really expect people to give you money for your adoption?” And my favorite: “What if someone thinks you got pregnant by an African American and Rit is not the father?” Oh wow! I will not even give energy to answering these questions.

However, one question was asked to me recently and I do want to expand on the answer. It was not the time or place to expand on my answer with this particular person, but it has been on my mind for quite some time.

I was sitting at the park during one of my children’s class fieldtrips. One of the other mothers and I were talking about our adoption. When I mentioned that our adoptive child would make #5, she very matter of factly said to me: “How are you going to be able to spend time with ALL your children?”

At the moment, I simply said: “Just like I am doing today. I have 4 kids. Today, I am spending the entire day with only 1 of them”

She said, “I know, but I just don’t feel like I have enough time to give my kids the attention they need, and I only have two of them”.

Hmmmm….her comment made me sad. But it also confirmed what I already know. Our culture is so confused over what it means to be a mother.

And it has to do with one word: ATTENTION 

I am a working mom. I work sometimes 40 hours a week. I work for a family business and, 3 days out of the week, I am away from the home. 4 days out of the week, I am at home. Some days I travel. Some nights I travel. I write this blog. I also have hobbies and interests. I am always helping others with health questions and working as a vaccine safety advocate. I am a wife. A sister. A daughter. A granddaughter. An aunt. A friend. And even still…..even with all those other titles, my 4 (almost 5) children, still receive SO much of my time and attention. It’s almost comical.

ATTENTION

I know that when I put my son to sleep at night, that he likes to hold a certain corner of his blanket. His blanket has 4 corners, but he only likes to hold one particular corner. I know that he likes me to sing a certain song and rub his head. I also know that when I walk out of his room, he likes his fan on, light off, and his train nightlight plugged in.

When I go into the big girls room, I know exactly how each of them likes to be tucked in, with which particular blankets. I know (and so do they) that we will always hold hands and pray together.

When I put the Tot in her crib, I know that she likes to keep a water bottle in the top corner of her crib. I know that she gets thirsty at night and likes to always have water to drink. I also know that she waits for me to say: “Jesus keep you safe”, because she loves to always say “AMEN” before she goes to sleep.

I know that when I serve organic, uncured, turkey hotdogs for lunch that each child prefers theirs prepared differently. Big Sister likes her hotdog heated up and cut in half, lengthwise. Next sister likes hers cold, cut into circles and yellow mustard dotted on each circle. Brother likes his cold too, cut up, with a big dollop of ketchup for him to dip his hotdog into. The Tot, she likes hers cold and whole. She holds it in her hand and eats it in about 3 bites.

How do I know all of these intimate details about my children? Because I pay ATTENTION to my children. Each child is unique and holds a special place in my heart. I pay attention to all of their needs and wants, sometimes even over my own.

American children are saturated with attention!  We as parents smother our children with attention.

If you ask any parent if it important that their children feel loved and special, every parent will say an astounding YES.

So we coddle and spoil and inundate our children with attention. We have become our children’s biggest cheerleaders. So much so, that our culture has taught us that we are also to be our children’s constant playmate and entertainers.

And we have been led to believe that the way to making children feel loved and special is through ATTENTION. I agree. To an extent.

There is a recent article that went viral. It was shared by many of my friends on fb, titled “Dear mom on the iPhone: Let me tell you what you don’t see”

Oh the judgment of this piece. As if mothers in anyway need any more guilt to feel as if they are “missing out” on their child’s life.

If you are a mother raising your child in America, our culture does not even make it possible to miss out on your child’s life. Even if you look at your iphone the entire time your children play at the park. Even if (as the article says) you look down at your iphone and miss seeing “your little girl spinning round and round, making her dress twirl”.

Here’s the thing: I have a different perspective. 

The moment I walked into the baby orphanage in Uganda and saw 50 cribs filled with 50 babies who don’t have a mommy, are hardly touched or held, and have no-one who knows their intimiate needs and wants, it was at that moment that I realized what it means for a child to NOT receive ATTENTION.

And my definition of what it means to give a child ATTENTION has never been the same.

Yes, I know. Meeting needs and showing attention are two completely different concepts. But they also go hand in hand.

I will not for one second ever wonder IF or HOW I will spend “enough” time with all of my children. Or wonder if I am capable of giving proper attention to 5 kids.

If a child has a roof over their head. Is held. Hugged. Fed. Bathed. And Dressed. They have received an abundance of ATTENTION!

Our role as parents goes so much deeper than meeting basic needs and showing attention, but that’s a whole different post.

As far as our adoption goes and adding a 5th child to our family; I was speaking with a friend who visited the home where our adoptive child currently lives. I asked her who puts him to bed at night, who tucks him in, who sings to him, and prays with him before bed. She said: “I don’t think he receives any of that”

Our family can do that for Solomon.

So to the fellow mommy of two kids who asked me how I’m going to be able to spend time with ALL my children….

My answer is this: I will start by tucking each of them into bed every night and letting them know that they have a mommy who will never leave them and a Heavenly Father who adores them so much that He has great plans for them. Plans that are not to harm them. But to give them a hope and a future.

And then I’ll probably go sit on my couch and look at my iPhone, because it will be the first time I’ve sat down all day. Except for when I was at the park earlier in the day looking down on my iPhone while my kids swung on swings and twirled in their dresses.  He-he

Sweet Tooth Fixin’s…

Our Top 5 Go-To Sweet Tooth Desserts.

When we first gave up refined white sugar and candy and candy bars and boxed cake mixes and cupcakes and pre-made icing and all those other “treats”, my husband went through serious withdrawals. I remember one night he stood in the refrigerator and pounded orange juice. I asked what he was doing. He said “I need something sweet so bad”. Haha!

That’s when my sister gave us our 1^st Go-To Sweet Tooth Fixing Dessert: Peppermint Patties. They were delicious. And we had our first light bulb moment: You can actually enjoy the heck out of sweets and they can even be good for you . My husband has a major sweet tooth. It has been fun learning new recipes that satisfy a sweet tooth. And of course having healthy dessert alternatives for our children.

Here are our top 5 (current) go-to desserts. Mostly because they are super duper easy, fast, kid-approved, and beyond delicious.

#1: Peppermint Patties

The recipe originally came from Elena’s Pantry, but my sister traded out the agave nectar for maple syrup. This recipe only has 5 ingredients, and they are amazingly heavenly. Crunchy on the outside, smooth and creamy on the inside. The perfect mixture of peppermint and chocolate. You can find the full recipe and cooking directions (HERE)

INGREDIENTS:
½ cup coconut oil
¼ cup  (1/2 maple syrup & 1/2 honey)
½ teaspoon peppermint oil (I used organic)
½ to 1 cup chocolate chips (or a bar of organic dark chocolate)

We were seriously stuck on these Peppermint Patties for months. Maybe even a year.
Then (like with most things) we got sick of peppermint patties and needed something new. We found that a nice high quality bar of 60% or higher organic dark chocolate helped hit the sweet tooth spot, so we kept many bars of organic dark chocolate in our pantry. That was our “go-to” sweet tooth fix. Then we stopped being boring. Here are our next favorites after our beloved Peppermint Patties.

#2: Raw Fudge

There are many variations to raw fudge. I personally like the recipe from Organic Authority, because it contains only 5 ingredients, and then you can add any additional ingredients: nuts, peanut butter, bananas, etc…
We have never used candy or ice trays as molds. Just put on parchment paper in the freezer. You can cut into squares or before you put in freezer, you can roll the parchment paper into a log, then put in freezer and then cut into circle size pieces.

INGREDIENTS:
3/4 cup extra virgin organic coconut oil
3/4 cup raw organic honey
1/2 cup organic raw cocoa powder
-dash of sea salt
1/2 of vanilla bean or 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract

#3: Macadamia Caramel Clusters

Another Elena’s Pantry Recipe. *We substitute agave nectar with honey for this recipe. Perfected by my sister’s 10 year old, haha. These were the biggest hit at Thanksgiving. We made them last weekend. They lasted about 1/2 a day. Another super duper easy recipe, consisting of 6 ingredients. And yes, they taste just like caramel. Recipe can be found (HERE).

INGREDIENTS:
½ cup creamy roasted almond butter
½ cup honey
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
½ tsp celtic sea salt
1 cup macadamia nuts, toasted
1 cup chocolate drops (or dark chocolate chips or a bar of dark chocolate)

#4: Triple Chocolate Brownies (Muffins)


Recipe comes from the Dashing Dish. Seriously delicious and made for chocolate lovers. Moist and melts in your mouth, with a nice crunchy toping. Our kids devour these. So do I, and I don’t really have a sweet tooth. A bit more ingredients, but makes a lot (perfect to bring to a class party or b-day party). You can find original recipe and cooking instructions (HERE)

INGREDIENTS:
1 3/4 cup Oats
3 Egg whites
3/4 cup Unsweetened cocoa
1/2 cup Unsweetened applesauce
1 tsp Vanilla extract
1/2 cup Plain greek yogurt (or regular plain low fat yogurt)
1/2 tsp Cream of tartar (or 2 tsp. vinegar)
1 1/2 tsp Baking powder
1 1/2 tsp Baking soda
1/4 tsp Salt
1 cup Hot water
1/2 cup Baking stevia OR 1 cup sweetener of choice that measures like sugar 
1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

#5: Vanilla Bavarian Cream with Blackberry Sauce (this is more of a gourmet dessert, but it’s amazing) The first time we made this, we could not believe how amazing it tasted. My sister requested it to be catered at her wedding, haha. And friends started requesting it for b-day presents. That’s how ridiculously good it is. 
Recipe comes from the cookbook Nourishing Traditions. Here is an online link. 

INGREDIENTS:
1 TBS Gelatin
1/2 cup Water
4 egg yolks
1/2 cup maple syrup
1 TBS vanilla extract
4 egg whites
pinch of sea salt
2 cups heavy cream (preferably unpasteurized)
SAUCE:
1 12-ounce package frozen blueberries
1/2 cup maple syrup
1-2 cups water
Fresh blackberries for garnish

I highly recommend the cookbook/book Nourishing Traditions. 

Those are just our (current) top 5, of literally thousands of healthy alternative options for those nights when you have a sweet tooth (or if you are my husband, every night).

It has been so much fun learning that it is possible to enjoy sweets and not compromise your health or immune system. Eating healthy is not only beneficial, but it is also delicious!

Anyone have a favorite sweet tooth recipe they want to share? (It has to meet these requirements: super duper easy, fast, kid-approved, and beyond delicious.

Happy Sweet Tooth!

32 Mosquito Nets…

We did it. YOU did it.

God is good!

We exceeded our goal of 30.
All in one day.

32 Mosquito nets will be purchased for 32 Orphans.

The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’