Ezra

We decided to get a puppy.  I wanted something little and foo-foo, but Mark wanted something big and burly.  I decided that this was not a fight that I cared to win, so off we went to look for our large new family member.  We went to so many PetSmart's, clinics, and places we found on Craigslist.  Mark finally found the one he wanted.  She was a little white pitbull with a brown patch and blue eyes.  He fell in love right away.  I, of course, protested that pitbulls are mean and nasty.  Then again, I know very little about dogs, and was told I was wrong by just about every animal-loving person we encountered.  Mark was like a giddy little girl when he left to go get his 8 week old puppy.

He named her Ezra.  He thought he was naming her after a girl in the Bible.  Someone needs to read up.

Ezra became Mark and Izaiah's BFF right away.  She was the best little puppy and loved to snuggle.

 Our sweet next door neighbor, Maya.  She loves Ezra :)

One day, DeAndre and I were staying home for the day, and Mark left for work.  He let Ezra out in the backyard, knowing that we would soon wake up and let her back in.  When I woke up, she was gone.  We assumed she had gotten out of the fence somehow.  We posted fliers all over the neighborhood.  150 to be exact.  The next morning, all but two signs were taken down.  Mark was devastated.  Was our puppy stolen?

A neighbor with surveillance cameras offered to try to catch the people who were tearing down the signs, so we placed fliers all around his house.  Sure enough, two different men came by, trying to sneakily tear down the signs.  We caught their faces and car on camera, but no license plate number.

Then Mark received a phone call from "S".  "S" said he had our puppy, and if we wanted her back, we needed to pay him and his partner $200.  They asked Mark to meet them right away, and gave him an address not far from where we live.  Before I could stop him, off Mark went to rescue little Ezra.  When he got to the address, they said that they needed the money before they would give her back.  They claimed that they bought her off of a breeder and wanted their money back.  Mark didn't have the money yet, so they called and called, badgering him to come up with it.  The police got involved and planned a little sting.

In the meantime, "S"s girlfriend called and told Mark that Ezra kept biting her child and she wanted Ezra gone immediately.  We assumed that S and his partner had her call to put pressure on us.  Finally, a week after she disappeared, the police devised a plan.  The girlfriend called and said to come get Ezra.  She gave him a different address, as well as her cell phone and home phone number.  As soon as Mark left, S called and was a little upset to learn that his girlfriend had been calling Mark.  I guess she REALLY wanted to get rid of Ezra.  Mark arranged to meet S at a gas station to make the exchange.  Undercover cops waited and watched from nearby.  S told Mark inside the gas station that once he had the money, he would have his partner bring Ezra to the gas station.  Mark declined.  S got upset.  Cops busted in, cuffed S.  S finally cracked after half an hour in the back of the blazing hot squad car.  Cops went and rescued Ezra, and back home she came!

I'm sure I don't need to tell you how relieved we all were.  It appeared that they did not feed her much, and she had lots of scrapes under her belly.  Once she got home, she slept for forever, and it took a few days for her to return to her sweet, energetic self. 

A little word to the thieves who thought they could actually get away with their little dognapping:

         "You are so dumb.  You're really dumb, for real!"  Ten points if you can name that quote.

Moral of the story, kids, is DON'T LEAVE YOUR PITBULL IN THE BACKYARD IN SOUTH CITY!  Apparently pitbulls make good fighting dogs (who knew) who in turn make lots of money.

WELCOME BACK EZRA!!!!!!!!!

 This looks really uncomfortable but they slept this way for hours!

DeAndre

Whew!  Our lives have been so crazy and stressful lately, hence the blog hiatus.  We are currently trying to get a 14 year old boy in our custody.  His name is DeAndre and it was love at first sight.  Izaiah has a past connection to him and their bond is more than precious.  DeAndre has been spending weekends with us for several months now.  We are praying that he goes wherever is best for him.  He went on vacation with us to Branson and now the whole fam is in love with him too!  He is so amazing.

 Izaiah's 6th Birthday!

Run and tell THAT, homeboy!

Antoine Dodson is my hero. BEST. VIDEO. EVER.


....And don't forget the remix!

Bliss

Before they left for the Lynard Skynard concert

Happy 6th Birthday, Izaiah Candor!

My dad and neice, Anyiah

Good lookin crew

Who's a Mama G's boy?

Grandma and Grandpa with Izaiah

I'll bet you can't guess who made this.
P.S. His name is not spelled like this anymore.

Without Further Ado...

Introducing Izaiah Candor Fitzgerald!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Adoption Day was June 25th, the day before his 6th birthday. Everything was amazing! My family was here, Mark's sister and neice, and some other family. It was so wonderful! I was so emotional the whole couple of weeks before. More about that later. For now, enjoy the pics! He is now OFFICIALLY our son!!!!!!

Izaiah and his attorney looking at all Judge Missy's cool things

Everyone

Judge Missy-He is so great!

Soooooooooo happy!

Hard

Mark and I have been taking a Behavioral class on Monday night with about 20 other Foster/Adoptive Parents with children with severe behaviors. I feel like I am surrounded by about 20 angels while I am in that class. To hear their stories and see how some of them are parenting alone, or with three special needs kids, or while unemployed is so humbling. The class has turned out to be more of a support group, which has been a real blessing. It is unbelievably isolating to have a child with the brain damage and special needs that Izaiah has. We are just now starting to understand it, so it is next to impossible to get others to understand it. Our parenting with Izaiah looks so much different than how we would parent a different child. It's very hard to parent in a way that feels unnatural, but we have to do what works and what is best for Izaiah. Judgment seems to permeate from everywhere when this "normal" looking child shows some of his more colorful behavior. We are working on not letting that judgment define us, or define him. I guess it's a process. If Izaiah had autism or cerebral palsy, I think people would generally be a lot more tolerant and understanding of his special needs. However, when he looks physically normal, it is hard for people to GET that regular parenting techniques do not and will not ever work with him. There needs to be more support out there for children like this and the parents that raise them. So if you think of it, please go to God on our behalf. We could use every prayer you could spare!

The adoption is finally underway. We are seeing a light at the end of the tunnel! Hallelujah! This process is so hard for so many reasons. Sometimes I wish it could be the fairytale you imagine it to be, but what would be meaningful in that? Izaiah is excited about his new name (which we will reveal soon). He keeps saying, "You'll always be my Mommy? Forever and ever?" Words cannot TELL you how much we adore this child. Even when he is not calling me "Mommy", but something verrrry different. Hannah has been working with him after school and he is thriving with her. I love the bond those two have. Good aunts are a commodity. Every child needs someone who just thinks they are IT. Not IT the movie, but IT, the greatest thing next to Register Rewards from Walgreens. Hannah is that person for Izaiah. Izaiah, however, has learned that Hannah does NOT like to be woken up in the morning. I would love to have a video camera handy on those days. Ha!

Izaiah has hit a growth spurt. He is growing so fast we can barely keep clothes on him! He won a blue ribbon for his class's science fair project and we are so so proud of him!

We are having some rather LARGE complications with our house. Too much drama to write about, but maybe one day when it is long enough removed to be funny.

My job is ridiculous! I have an intense love/hate relationship with it. Oh the stories I wish I could share! I have a year and a half left of licensure, which is very surreal to me. I cannot wait to put LCSW behind my name. My research on foster parent retention and satisfaction has generated some interest in the field, so I'm not sure where that will lead, but it's neat!
"Be kind, for everyone is fighting a great battle."

Prayer Requests

My 8 year old cousin, Stone, was killed in a car wreck this past week. They live in Colorado. His mom and sister were also in the car. Alahna, 12, is in critical condition. It breaks my heart. Please pray. It makes me hug my baby boy a lot tighter.

Second of all, we are in the process of working through things with Mark's family. There has been a lot of lies and nastiness. A lot of it continues, but we feel it is important to love and forgive and are trying our best to do that regardless. Please pray for us, as we wish for this situation to be fixed and everyone to just love each other. It's quite a doosy, though.

On a similar note, I recently attended a training regarding interview techniques for sexual abuse victims. I found out some really shocking statistics that I want to share. I would cite the source, but it's at work. Let me know if you would like it. The studies were done with children who alleged sexual abuse which was later substantiated (proved true due to evidence). The studies show that 77% of those children later recant their stories and adamantly deny the abuse ever occuring. Is this because it didn't actually occur? NO. This is because the children see the consequences of having told, consequences like having their family angry with them, still having to be in contact with the abuser, fear of retaliation, fear of having to leave their family or be placed in foster care, or simply because denying to themselves that it happened is the only way they can cope. And these are the kids that have the courage to tell at some point. So can you even imagine all of the children that are never able to tell? Another fact is that in many families, there might be several siblings but only one who is a victim of abuse or neglect. This is so heartbreaking that I can't stand it.

On a random note, Izaiah is the most precious child in the world! The other day I was frustrated with him about something, and he said, ''Mommy, all I want to do is just make you happy.'' God help me because now I am comPLETely wrapped around his little finger!

Late Pictures

This is what Mark did all break. He loves his new laptop.

Everyone on Christmas morning

Izaiah helping Mama G make breakfast

Izaiah and Uncle Dave

He likes his bubbles "like a marshmallow"!

Cousins!

I never posted pics of our trip to Searcy for Thanksgiving. Izaiah had a blast with all my little second cousins. They were precious.

Kayla, Sophia, and Izaiah

Right after Thanksgiving we got to meet our new sweet baby neice, Jillian Kate. She's a doll. Izaiah loved her, but couldn't understand why she can't play with him yet :)




Mark's sister, Danielle, had her baby right after Christmas and we got to go see her just a few hours old. Little Aniyah Sky is so tiny! Izaiah was smitten. Actually, so was Mark. And as for me... what do you think? :) All these girl cousins. Izaiah's the only boy cousin. How long will that last? Anyone?