At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, and said, “Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever receives one little child like this in My name receives Me (Matthew 18:1-5).

My youngest son really made his older brother... more

My two sons are very different in a couple of profound ways: 1) they are not related biologically, and 2) they were born 4.5 years apart. Beyond that, they have uncanny similarities:

Appearance: When we first began the adoption journey, the social worker sent us pictures of the children who would eventually become our son and daughter. The day the e-mail came, my husband was at work, but my oldest son and I sat at the computer as the picture downloaded and began to fill our computer screen. I was floored! The children looked so much like our family,... more

Did you grow up hearing the Golden Rule? The verse that is frequently referred to as the Golden Rule is found in Luke chapter 6, verse 31 and it says, “Do to others as you would have them do to you.” (NIV) I think that most children, even those who are not part of a church family have heard this rule. One of the purposes of learning Bible verses is so they can come into your mind when you need them. Believe me, after helping many children memorize verses to recite on AWANA club nights, I have learned many. Obviously, the children recognize these verses when I recite them as well.... more

I woke up this morning to find that my oldest son had straightened up and swept the front entryway. Not to be outdone, Sissy wanted in, and they both set to work making my breakfast and their dad’s lunch for work.

For the rest of the day, all I had to do was mention something or ask, and it was done! Before you all besiege me with requests to open up a school or offer parenting seminars, let me say, I have no idea what spurred this on! If I had a pill or formula, I would bottle it, but I certainly have appreciated it while it’s lasted!

I had a migraine this... more

Biological siblings have the benefit of the same gene pool, genetic wiring, yada, yada, yada. Even adopted sibs can create a bond through artificial twinning in the sense that they are, generally speaking, going through the same developmental and cognitive milestones at the same time. But how do you explain a brother and sister who are not related biologically, and are not close in age, but yet can read each so well that they know each other better than they know themselves?

Let... more

Chalk this one up the Bizarro Hall of Fame, but what are the odds that two of my children would lose a tooth ten minutes apart?

Both have been saying for days that they have wiggly teeth. Both have worked with their loose teeth, given status reports, and have generally been very aware of all things dental. At first, I thought maybe my daughter was trying to copy her older brother. As of late, “copying” has been a huge topic here at Casa Stro. When eating out, she will... more

My boys love each other. They are absolutely crazy about each other. From the moment they met until right this very second, they have a bond that is incredibly strong and can only grow stronger with time.

This afternoon, after my youngest had just woken up from his nap, the boys snuggled up with each other. While his younger brother was shaking off his slumber, my oldest son regaled him with tales of how much we wanted to adopt him. He told him how much we loved him. He told him best of all, that even when we die, they will still be brothers (in Christ)!

They cuddle together, they play together; they say silly things to each other…Things I don’t quite understand, being an... more

My three children often play a game wherein they talk about their future aspirations: My oldest wants to be a train conductor and have his own station to run; my daughter wants to be a doctor and have her own hospital to run, my youngest wants to be a farmer, in charge of a farm complete with livestock, tractors and trucks.

I think it started when we were in their home state to finalize the adoption. Every time we passed a farm, my youngest would shout, “There’s my barn!” Then the other two would “stake their claim” to whatever was “theirs:” My oldest claimed the... more

When we first got home with our new children, my oldest son he had to have the concept of “copying is flattery” explained to him many, many times. Now, he loves when they want to be just like him, and actually goes out of his way to encourage it.

I’ve mentioned that my daughter has, what she calls, her “fake pump” to mimic that of my oldest’s insulin pump. Whatever he chooses for dessert is what she wants. Ditto with my youngest son - he loves my oldest son’s outgrown clothing... more

In addition to National Adoption Awareness Month, November is also National Novel Writing Month. For the past several years, many in the blogosphere have been participating in an event called NaNoWriMo (taken from the first few letters of each of the words in National Novel Writing Month). NaNoWriMo also has a Young Writers Program, and this year, my oldest son is (voluntarily!) participating as part of... more