Bye-Bye, Braces!

Look at this handsome thing before braces (but with expanders), Feb. 2016,

with braces,  Summer 2016,

on the last day of braces, March 2017,

and finally SANS braces, as of Wednesday afternoon.  

He couldn't stop grinning and licking his teeth with his tongue and I couldn't keep the momma-tears at bay for a bit.  Fun milestone!  He has a retainer to wear at night as well as permanent wires behind all his bottom teeth and two of this top teeth to somewhat keep them in position while we wait for the rest of his baby teeth to fall out.  The ortho showed me where the canines are pushing down and the pre-molars have already broken through.  I'd say it's Go Time, but time has already gone and is going again.  The orthodontist's office isn't named Smile Construction for nothing!  Under construction for sure and looking so good all the while.  

For Noah's part, he is just happy to be able to drink sodas again, chew gum {sugar-free, mind you}, and enjoy his long-lost popcorn with Daddy.  Ha!  Until Phase 2 of braces, that is. ;)

Hair Around Here

Blog's been quiet.  Not much to report on lately ... except a steady stream of hair around here. :}

Six sections and bantu knots again.  I think it is SO neat how her hair holds itself in place at the ends. I  just tucked the ends of the twists underneath the knots and she was good to go.

I was inspired by how my friend, Emmie, just whipped her daughter's hair up in a partial french braid around the crown of her daughter's head when they were visiting last week.  I had her give me a couple pointers and I tried it on Anna that day, though I finished it off with another go at a fishtail.  Not bad!

Lasa was inspired watching me work on Anna and wanted to try her hand at the doing of the hair, too.  So I set her up behind me and let her get to work.  It was so funny!  She would try to brush my hair and then cry, 'Uh Oh!' with every stroke when she didn't manage to brush it down to the end and found the hair still stuck in the brush.  She wasn't quite ready for all that.

So we settled for selfies and giggles and messing with the brush alone instead. 

Speaking of hair, I wanted to share this pic of Anna's hair on a day when she is left to her own devices.  Raggedy Anna is an understatement ... and it melts my heart.  I love her messy look.  It's so her.  It's so her in fact, that when I asked her to grab my camera so I could take a pic of the hair all over the place and in her face, she owned the look and took the selfie herself.  See that big natural grin! Love.

Back in Lasaland, we have fallen in to an easy routine of doing two-strand twists for the most part.  I am trying out some homemade moisture sprays and ingredients which is a real trial-and-error process.  My next ingredient to try is some aloe juice!  This 'do I did after a daily refresh with water, conditioner, and fractionated coconut oil ... seeing if the fco is any easier (but also effective enough) to spray than the regular coconut oil that clogs my bottle up.  True story, when I took this picture of the back of her head, this sweetie pie was grinning and saying cheese for the camera still.  Adorable!

And lastly, not exactly about hair, but still in the hairy department, this kiddo finally got a haircut.  His thick curls were driving him crazy.  And then he took me to see Beauty and the Beast with my birthday tickets. 

The Beast counts as hairy, too.  Fun fact, at the end of the movie, Belle asks hims to consider growing a beard.  Which reminds me, Josh shaved his off and it took us all a day or two to get used to it again.  HA!

Wise Word Woe and Reboot

My wise word this year is Gentleness.  And, it has not been going well.  Truth?  It's not been going at all.  I have NOT been gentle with my peeps lately.  It's just embarrassing how much I struggle with this!  It's quite possible that this wise word project will need two years' worth of focus for me!  For a variety of factors, I have been tired, edgy, emotional, frustrated, easily irritated, and just plain old short-tempered.  Throw in homeschooling and a toddler all the while and you have a real pressure cooker.  I gotta get a grip!

One way I attempt to get a grip is by retreating and using less words.  Another way is with prayer.  And one way I am loving to pray is with my Valley of Vision book of Puritan prayers that I have mentioned a number of times already.  This prayer, specifically, skewered me the other night.  Tears fell down my cheeks as I read the beautiful true words about my condition compared with the Lord's.  It said exactly what I bemoaned to Josh that night after a bad day when I just knew I felt grumpy and I couldn't reason myself out of it and I hated that that was where my brain was stuck!  I felt so guilty at how impossible I can be and I said all I can say for myself is that I am a beast and I need the Lord to lift me up and out of it!  Need extra helpings of His grace some days  ...  a lot lately!  And sure enough, that night this was the page I was on, the prayer I was on - Need of Grace.

"I cannot think or act but every motion is sin. Return again with showers of converting grace to a poor gospel-abusing sinner."  Amen!  How good is the Lord to answer me with timely correction, tender mercy, and fresh starts with his Spirit helping me along?  So good.  So patient with me!  So opposite of me.

Anyway, all that to say, Kimmie's Gentleness Progress Report reports very little progress thus far.  I am so ready to turn the calendar page on this first chunk of 2017 next week and start again here with Spring's onset.  Welcome, Spring, and, with it, a Gentleness reboot!  Help me, Lord!

38

Oh yeah!  I turned 38 last week!  

It came with super yummy cake, a performance from Anna of her favorite song - How Deep the Father's Love for Us, a cargo net for the back of my car so crap will stop falling out every ding-dang day, tickets to see Beauty and the Beast this weekend, and a fun strap for my phone so I don't even have to hold on to it to hold on to it.  HA!  Another fun surprise came courtesy of my thoughtful friend Cindy when she surprised me with a CFA biscuit first thing in the morning.  :) 

And since the actual day of my birthday was sort of stinky and awful in every single possible annoying way, Josh brought home pizza and we watched a fun new movie that I had been looking forward to seeing again ever since we saw it in the theater - Moana.  Pizza and a movie for the win this birthday!

TPR Trial Date

Yesterday's preliminary hearing saw Angelique in attendance in order to be assigned a court-appointed attorney and also saw a trial date assigned and set for Monday, August 21.  Again, Angelique brought up all the "papers" she has showing all the things she has completed.  This confuses me to no end and I half don't believe anything she says, but will be quite interested to see what the papers are and how, if anything, they have anything to do with TPR.  So now we wait.

First, I was amazed at how far out we have to wait for a silly court date after all this time already!  Then, peace rushed in and I thought of all the possibilities that make this a good time frame.

• Good because it gives us time to try to talk to Angelique again about reasons we think she should consider working with us on this point.  
• Good because it gives her time to talk to her attorney and maybe she will speak reason to her.  If either of these options is effective, she can just give her consent now and save the hassle of trial altogether.  
• Good because it gives us til after Lasa's 2nd birthday, which I just have to believe works in our favor - that she will have been with us a full 2 years by then!  Josh says it matters not in this case, but I choose to hope still.  Ha! 
• Good because it gives me time to get stabilized emotionally and really be obedient in my heart to trust this outcome and its timing allllll to the Lord and not take it back from Him with any more carrying on.  It has been a rough last month for me in that regard.  So time to fix that counts for good!  
• And also, honestly, good because it allows a long chunk of time for Angelique to walk the line and not get in trouble again between now and then.  And time for her to prove it (or not) if she wants to LEGITIMATELY be involved with Lasa. Whether she is in touch the next 5 mos or not will not play into the trial proceedings because this filing will only consider the four months leading up to her incarceration last November.  But I feel like all of it being documented bit by bit gets us closer to the end of this chapter - if not now, then later, but still closer regardless.

Here is how we will be praying over the next five months:

1. Praying for favor with Angelique in that her eyes will be opened to how this benefits Lasa.  
2. Praying for favor with the judge in August, whom we are told is very conservative and rarely grants TPR for abandonment alone.
3. Praying for steadiness of heart and peace as we leave this outcome in God's very able and trustworthy hands.
4. Praying for justice to win out in this case. Praying some Psalms kinda prayers!
5. Praying for God to do whatever he requires/desires to be given glory in this situation.  I understand that can come from either outcome! 

Little Sleepyhead

I meant to save here awhile ago this book we know by heart because Lasa can't get enough of it.  Today when I found it bent backwards at the binding and two bites ripped out of the back pages, I knew I better get a move on or the book wouldn't survive to see pics like I hoped.  And so, finally, Little Sleepyhead. 

Need Another Word for Words!

Another word dump comin' at ya!  Kimmie can't help herself.  They are all so delicious and interesting and I just can't let them cross my path without taking mental pics of their sound and meaning! Faves in bold.

gallimaufrey - a confused jumble or medley of things
nosocomial - (of a disease) originating in a hospital
veridical - truthful; coinciding with reality
comport - conduct onself; behave
abstemious - not self-indulgent
tonsure - the top part of a monk's or priest's head that is shaved bare
titter - a short, half-suppressed laugh; giggle
omnibus - comprising several items
grandee - person of high rank or eminence
peradventure - perhaps; uncertainty or doubt at to whether something is the case
protean - tending or able to change frequently or easily; versatile
succor - assistance and support in times of hardship or distress; give assistance
mayhap - perhaps; possibly
disrelish - a feeling of dislike or distaste
lineaments - a distinctive characteristic or feature, usually of the face
nugatory - of no value or importance

Recipe: Crispy Cheddar Chicken

Winner, winner, Chicken Dinner!  This tasty little dish is one we first had at my sister's house and we all loved it so much that I insisted she forward me the recipe.  I have made it twice at home since, last week most recently, and, gosh, it gets all sorts of compliments the entire time it cooks and for all the feasting on it after.  It's easy to make and easy to eat.  Thumbs up from allllll my peeps and Emily's, too.  It would be a crime for me to share the food love! 

Crispy Cheddar Chicken 
from jamiecooksitup.net

Chicken:
4 large chicken breasts
2 sleeves Ritz crackers
1/4 t salt
1/8 t pepper
1/2 C milk
3 C cheddar cheese, grated
1 t dried parsley

Sauce:
1 10 oz. can cream of chicken soup
2 T sour cream
2 T butter

Instructions:
1. Cut each chicken breast into 3 large chunks.
2. In a small food processor, grind up the ritz crackers. (I did it with my hands)
3. Pour the milk, cheese, and cracker crumbs into 3 separate small pans.  Toss the salt and pepper into cracker crumbs and stir mixture to combine.
4. Dip each piece of chicken into milk, then the cheese.  Press the cheese into the chicken with your fingers.  Some it will fall off when you add it to the cracker crumbs, don't worry about it.  Press the cheesy chicken into the cracker crumbs and press it in.  By the time you are coating the last piece of chicken, the dish you are using for crumbs will be fully of cheese. No worries!  Once the cheese melts in the oven, it will adhere nicely to the crumbs and the crackers.
5.  Spray a 9x13 dish with cooking spray and lay the chicken inside the pan.
6.  Sprinkle the parsley over the chicken.
7. Cover the pan with foil and bake at 400 degrees for 35 mins. Remove the tin foil and bake for an addt'l 10 mins or until the edges of the chicken are golden brown and crispy.
8.  Into medium sized sauce pan, combine the cream of chicken soup, sour cream, and butter with a whisk.  Stir it over medium high heat until the sauce is nice and hot. Serve over chicken.

So, so yum.  Thank me later! ;)

In Which We Do More 'Do's

These are called Box Braids, I believe.  I love how you don't have to tie off the ends of styles like this.  Her hair will hold its curl at the bottom if you just twist it.  So neat!  White chick hair can't do that!

My attempt at Bantu Knots starting with Two-Strand Twists.  Next time, I am gonna try just twisting alone, instead of two-strand twists.

Next up, some angular parts + banding the sections + two strand twists + bands at bottom just because I was about to have her sleep on it and was hoping it would reduce frizz by morning.  It did not. 

In the morning I had to refresh all the sections, but at least the parting and detangling and moisturing was already done.  Still counts for a win!  I took pics this day because it was her first ever Storytime at the library.  Sweet!

I got a THIRD DAY out of this 'do, but it had to be refreshed again in the morning.  This time, I only redid the front three sections and just spray moisturized the back ones and gelled those loose hairs sort of back into place.  I took pics of this day because she was in a new outfit that I LOVE.  So cute.

And most recently, I tested my skills at just wingin' it in the morning after wash day and seeing what I could pull together.  We need a handful of go-to 'do's that won't stress me out and won't require a lot of time or attention to complete.  Quick pony two-strand twist + little pony two-strand twist fit that bill just fine. :)  Test run the night before with her first-ever ballies to hold it. 

Second day with (sort of) straighter part and sweetie pie bow. 

In the midst of all this learnin' and tryin' stuff, Anna's hair got some action, too.  Our first ever fishtail and another run at some sponge-rolled curls.  We did the sponge rollers two nights in a row - first in a ponytail and second loose around her head.  Loose around her head had the best results.  Didn't hurt that I actually used hair spray the second day either.

The curls have even lasted into a second day.  I wonder if it's that natural wave she has in her hair anyway that's holding it so well.  We are thinking about trying some curl products in her hair soon to see how it will respond.  Will be fun!  This super straight-haired momma is having fun with all the curls!

Ten-ish Things from Ten-ish Days

We have had a weird week with Angelique that has sort of put me in a weird head space, so I have only a strange mismatched post to show for the last 10 days or so.  

Hat Dat at Anchored in Anna's class.  She's the cutest!

We made a quill pen with one of our lessons.  I could not believe the luck that this size feather was found in our backyard just a few days before we needed it!

Josh dusted off his little trailer train for his lawnmower and Lasa (cautiously) loved it! 

Noah's completed timeline project for Anchored.  His teacher texted me this after he presented it and exclaimed how much she loved it.  I was so glad for him.  

I upgraded Lasa to a regular pillow from a toddler pillow and she took to it right away.  She just about never used the toddler pillow and I really needed her to lay her locks on a satin pillowcase instead of the cotton crib sheet.  Worked like a charm.  Happy Kimmie!

Lasa's first play-doh experience.  She was so timid about it.  Wouldn't squeeze it or play until I manipulated her fingers to do so.  Then she enjoyed it more. 

We had the playdoh out to begin with because the kids were making physical maps of the Louisiana Purchase to go along with our Lewis and Clark unit.

Anna continues to rock it out at her American Girl sewing class. Her cape and bonnet are completed as well as the pjs.  So proud of her.  She is the littlest one in her class and keeping up with ease.

I cannot put down my Valley of Vision lately.  One quote among many I marked this week.

Field Trip with a slew of homeschoolers to the Tennessee Performing Arts Center on Friday to see a performance of Alice in Wonderland. It was neat to go there as we have never been before.  The play, unfortunately, wasn't as interesting as we thought it would be.  But not bad either!

In terms of Angelique stuff, she inexplicably called multiple times a day all last week and texted on top of that.  She kept wanting to tell Lasa goodnight, so we did what we could to make that happen.  Then she asked for a Saturday visit at a restaurant instead of our usual Sunday.  We did what we could to make that happen as well.  And then she cancelled at the last minute.  Which snowballed into a mess of a Saturday for me and Josh as we re-evaluated how often we will allow her to throw our weekends for a loop.  So, no visit happened this weekend after all the calls and such all week.  I cannot tell you why she was suddenly so much in touch after 19 months of not being in any form of regular contact.  Not sure what is up with her or why, but we will keep trucking along and see what comes.  Court hearing is next week and then things should pick up a little bit on the TPR front.  I am tired of it all.