Kristin Hill Taylor

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{Adoption} Ben is 4!

November 23, 2013 by Kristin 3 Comments


My boy turns 4 today! I tend to associate his birth with Thanksgiving as he was born the Monday before the holiday and the turkey we ate that day was 2.75 times bigger than my baby. But this year his birthday is the same day as National Adoption Day. You can read his adoption story here and you’ll find the introduction to my guest post on No Maybe Baby below. 

Ben,

Without adoption, our family wouldn’t be what it is. And without you our family wouldn’t be like it is. You’re loud, messy, sweet, funny, mischievous and always moving. These are the adjectives that have described you since your first days of life and they continue to be true.

Four years in, my boy, and you continue to surprise me. During your parent-teacher conference last month, Mrs. Sands told us how you help your friends clean up when they’re finished with center time. Well done, son.

Honestly, I’m still not entirely sure how to be a boy mom, but you’re teaching me, that’s for sure. You challenge me and encourages me to live in the present. You notice more than I expect yet you don’t want to give many details beyond recess about your school day.

Yes, I have to correct you repeatedly. I remind you to slow down and be careful. I wonder what you’re up to when I don’t hear you. But you’re learning. And you still take naps many days and sleep about 11 hours at night. All the going and talking and moving about requires precious sleep!

I’m learning too. I’m learning that this life right here, right now is worth it. Ben, you love us fiercely and have so much energy that you can channel into filling people’s lives. Admittedly, some days I inadvertently squash and box your energy, but I’m constantly praying that God helps me encourage you to channel it as we learn together.

You adore your sister and believe you can do anything she can do, play any game that involves a ball, climb and run and jump, sing often, surprisingly sit still to read books, and draw others in with your social personality.

You remind us often with your words and actions that you’re becoming quite a big boy. Your independence challenges me sometimes as a momma, but I know it will serve you well in this life. You like to talk about our plans for the day, what movies you’ve been watching, what road trip is coming next, and when Cate and Daddy are going to be home. And you always thank God for the four of us.

I thank God for the four of us too. You’re just what our family needs. God knew what he was doing when he created your life and made us a family. We’re all better with each other.

Happy fourth birthday, son. I love you more than ice cream.

________

In other news today, I’m also guest posting at Marcy Hanson’s No Maybe Baby. Marcy and I connected on Twitter and she’s recommended several books I’m excited to read and have included on an upcoming post about adoption resources. One of those books is hers. “No Maybe Baby” takes readers through seasons of infertility, fostering and adoption.

I would have told you I was pro-life long before I knew adoption was going to be my family’s story. But then I adopted – twice – and my definition of pro-life changed.

In 2007, I became a momma, finally, just seven months after giving up trying to get pregnant. My baby came because someone else chose life for her. And then about 30 months later, we brought home our second child whose life is owed to another brave woman. I’m grateful beyond words these two women chose life for the babies growing inside of them.

So, of course, I’m pro-life. But since bringing these babies home, I’ve realized pro-life is more than a political stance. It’s also a belief children are a blessing and not a burden. And I’m so grateful my kids’ birth moms recognized this too.

When we moms stand together, support each other, and commit to doing our best for our kids and the ones around us, then we’re pro-life. …

{Continue reading at No Maybe Baby …}

________

This is the 11th in this month’s series in celebration of National Adoption Month. Read all the posts here. Want more stories? Like 152 Insights on Facebook. Follow me on Twitter and Instagram. Follow 152 Insights at Bloglovin’. Subscribe to receive “Insights in Your Inbox.”

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Filed Under: adoption, Ben, guest post

Comments

  1. Beth says

    November 23, 2013 at 2:14 pm

    Happy Birthday, Ben! Such a beautiful and touching letter to your son. Thanks for sharing with us Kristin. Thank you for sharing your stories of adoption with us. Beautiful!

    Reply
  2. KristinHillTaylor says

    November 24, 2013 at 3:04 am

    Thanks, Beth! I hope you're having a good weekend!

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Giving thanks for Ben’s life says:
    November 23, 2017 at 6:01 am

    […] back on Ben’s life:  1 year old. 2 years old. 3 years old. 4 years old. 5 years old. 6 years old. 7 years […]

    Reply

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About Me

Telling stories is my therapy and I love sharing them with friends on my porch.

The main characters in my stories are my entrepreneur husband, our eighth-grade girl who never forgets, our have-no-fear fifth-grade boy, and our joy-filled preschool girl. As we live out our stories, we seek God as the author of them all.

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I’ve loved Cate’s school experience at @ncca.l I’ve loved Cate’s school experience at @ncca.lions, a small but growing classical, Christian school. I knew there were both advantages and sacrifices of keeping her in a small class for middle school and agonized over possibly moving her to a bigger school. I only considered moving her because I wasn’t sure what her classmates, some of who are freshman this year, were going to do for high school. But they stayed, and we stayed. Now she’s an eighth grader in a class of nine. 

A couple years ago, I prayed for more girls. God gave her class two. Sometimes people move on, and sometimes people move in. But this sweet class of eighth and ninth graders has been faithful — to each other, to our school, to an unknown future. They’re paving a way for the students behind them, including my other two kids. 

God has been kind to my momma heart and given me some assurances she is where she’s supposed to be. One of these provisions is a basketball team that has become competitive with the other teams we’ve gotten to play. It’s more than just some games, though. I’ve watched my 13-year-old daughter become more confident on the court and in life. I’m grateful for her friends and their shared love of this game. I’m thankful for where God has us. 

#momlife #classicaleducation #choosingJOY #livingfaithfully #girlmom #momconfessions #bettertogether #middleschool #middleschoolbasketball
At a basketball game Thursday night, Ben told me h At a basketball game Thursday night, Ben told me he had a loose tooth and was going to go to the bathroom to maybe pull it. He pulled it. That’s #14, and he’s dealt with every single one, just as his older sister did with all 20 of hers.

Meanwhile, little sister has a loose tooth that she won’t wiggle, avoids using to eat, and won’t let her siblings pull. We’ve bribed, threatened, and failed to persuade.

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Anyway, it’s Friday! So let’s do some #fridayintroductions around here. Tell me three things you’re loving these days. I’ve already mostly told you mine: 

1️⃣ My bangs. I’ve included a picture of the fun waves that Whitney gave me at the salon and the more likely normal styling — by that I mean blow drying and some minor straightening to train the bangs. 
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✨ Bonus current love: Who can tell me what TV character inspired my hairdo? If you know, then that’s also the TV show I recently binged and am eagerly awaiting new episodes. 

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For now, we’ll let them make memories together. That’s part of caretaking I hadn’t considered. #bettertogether #weekending #choosingJOY
I’ve been in a reading slump. I returned one lib I’ve been in a reading slump. I returned one library book I couldn’t get into and then couldn’t decide what to read next. So I went with this library book — and I’m glad I did.

“The Unhoneymooners” by @christinalauren is a funny romance novel that helped distract my mind from heavy thoughts. It also made me want to go to Maui. The dialogue is delightful, the story of quirky from the get-go, and I definitely found myself rooting for Ethan and Olive.

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My friend Delana called before she brought us dinn My friend Delana called before she brought us dinner yesterday and asked if we liked chocolate pie. Um, yes. Turns out both Peggy and I love chocolate pie. Delana gave us chocolate chips cookies too, you know, just in case we didn’t like pie.

My friends are loving on us so well this week with dinner & dessert, obviously. Yes, the food is good, but the way they saw a need and met it is even more gracious. (I wrote a book about gathering & nourishing your people!) Having someone provide dinner has freed up some mental space I’m able to use for taking care of Peggy and parenting my kids, some of whom have needed a little extra love and guidance this week. 

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#bettertogether #momlife #reallife #morethangroceries #choosingJOY
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