Uh Oh

An afternoon conversation:

Elias: Mommy, I want to play Mario Kart Wii

Me: Not right now, babe. I'm holding Isla and she is almost asleep. I promise I will play with you later.

Elias: WHY? I want to play RIGHT NOW!

Me: Not right now, Elias.

Elias: Why?

Me: (sigh) Because I said so and I'm the Mommy!

Elias: (growling) You not say that EVER EVER EVER!

Honestly, I can't seem to figure out what's worse - my two year old's attitude or the fact that I actually stooped as low as saying "because I said so." I remember swearing I would never say that to my kids since it was a total cop out. Since I feel like defending myself though I will point out I gave a valid explanation before using the dreaded phrase.

just another MIRACLE, baby!

So the past couple of years have held a lot for us - some great, some not-so-great - either way, it has been a lot. We have experienced scares and MIRACLES!

After an adoption process that seemed like it would never end, Elias became our son on December 31, 2008 and we were united as a family on February 1, 2009! He was our first MIRACLE! When I look at my wonderful little boy I am overwhelmed with love and awe. God chose me. I did absolutely nothing to deserve the joy and privilege of hearing Elias call me "Mama" but God chose me. By God's perfect design we were meant for each other long before either of us existed, and by God's grace he brought us together as a family from the far corners of the Earth. Elias is my MIRACLE baby!

Six short months after we got home with Elias we found out we were expecting another child, this time biologically. I was worried that the bond with my second child would not be as strong as the bond I had with my first but God had plans we could have never dreamed for ourselves that brought that baby and I closer than I could have ever planned.

On October 22, 2009, after weeks of testing, waiting, more testing and more waiting, I was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma at 14 weeks pregnant. Isla and I went through chemotherapy together. We endured pokes, prods, tests, labs, drugs, hospitalizations, scans, and a whole slew of other necessary medical garbage. Despite all this, our precious MIRACLE baby #2 was born 6 weeks early on March 15, 2010. Isla is such an absolute joy and brings so much happiness to our entire family!

Exactly 8 months to the day after my diagnosis God chose to bless us with yet another MIRACLE and on June 22, 2010 I was declared in complete remission! We are so thankful that God chose to heal me!

Now today, we have another MIRACLE to announce. Here is an excerpt taken from my private blog. This was written the day after I was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma:

Friday afternoon we were supposed to meet with a fertility specialist to discuss fertility options as chemo can often make people sterile. Instead we got a phone call from the oncologist saying this appointment wasn't necessary as they had learned from the specialist that harvesting eggs was impossible to do while pregnant. Brian and I are so thankful God planted the seed of adoption when He did. We are so thankful that despite very real financial obstacles we proceeded in faith when we did. Having Elias as our son prepared us for news that otherwise might have been very devestating. There is a very real possibility we will only be able to have one biological child, the child I am now carrying. God was gracious enough to give us the adoption experience we had at just the right time to prepare our hearts and minds. We have always planned another adoption and so as hard as this news may seem it really isn't a source of grief for Brian or I.

In our very first meeting with the oncologist the first side effect of chemotherapy that he warned us about was that of infertility. I was told I would not be able to conceive for a number of years and very possibly for the rest of my life. Brian and I were okay with that and began talking about another adoption right away. In fact, December 22nd will be my 6 month remission anniversary and we were hoping to start the adoption process then.

So, imagine our surprise when God gave us MIRACLE baby #3

Meet the latest Gossett baby! Our due date is May 19th (just three weeks after Isla's due date). Yes, if Isla wasn't 6 weeks early these kiddos would be 12 VERY SHORT months apart!

This MIRACLE has taken some time to process - let's be honest here, no sane person plans 3 kids under the age of 3. That said, all Brian and I could do was laugh in disbelief when we saw those two pink lines. God in his sovereignty chose to give us ANOTHER MIRACLE BABY and we can't wait to find out what amazing things He has planned for this precious little life!

Halloween Fun

We had a great weekend filled with lots of parties, the pumpkin patch and finally trick-or-treating!Alemu took Elias on a hay ride. Elias was super excited and had a great time with his uncle.

Notice the arm around the shoulder :)

Isla loves kisses!!

Sitting on her Papi's shoulders

Israel and Alemu did the maze blindfolded. Alemu was so grossed out that he had to hold my hand to get to the starting line.

Family Pumpkin Patch Photo, October 30, 2010

Any guesses who might be teething?

Lassoing the bull

Another family photo...this one in costume. Elias was a giraffe, Isla a caterpillar and Brian and I were the zookeepers.

Trick-or-treating at Grandma and Grandpa's house.

Our "RAF"

Best buddies :)

Our little caterpillar

Group photo at the Denney's, our annual halloween night party

Uncle Alemu and Uncle Israel

And we're off...let the candy collecting begin

Alemu trying to run away from the camera, such a junior higher

Just a quick little juice break. Our giraffe was starting to get tired.

Checking out the end of the night loot! Every lollipop was met with a "YAY! LOLLIPOP!"

"Wow! This is a lot of good stuff."