Labor Day...No Seriously. Labor Day.

Guys.  We are counting down the weekends until the kiddos are home.  I mean seriously.  We are (fingers crossed) two/three weekends away from a house full of kiddos.  How insane is that????????????  But truly - we have A LOT to do.  A LOT.  This is where we turn into completely typical first time parents and realize that we have a to do list a mile long in order to get everything perfect for the kiddos.  So the fabulous Indiana parents traveled down to help us tackle our to do list.  

     First things first - the ATTIC.  If you had seen it - well - we definitely could have been an entertaining episode of  Hoarders.  You.Have.No.Idea.  And I am just going to say it.  My sweet, creative, adoring husband is Hoarder Numero Uno.  EVERYTHING, I mean EVERYTHING has some sort of sentimental attachment. I lean a bit more to the left wing of Hoarding - meaning - Let's just throw it all away.  So thankfully the elder Chalos' stepped up to the plate and braved the brown recluse and whatever else was in the attic to clean and conquer.  It took two days, but we came away with an organized attic (THANK YOU MITCH CHALOS!!!!) AND some pretty special treasures.  Chad is an only child - and his parents are literally the MOST organized people I have ever met - so it came as NO surprise to find ALL of Chad's childhood toys, stuffed animals, games, school work, clothes, etc... stored in our attic.  They were all neatly labeled and super organized - we just found it under the grime and chaos of the other 130 boxes.  So lets just say that the kids have an AMAZING collection of vintage toys, books, riding "sneakers"  (Oh yeah - I said riding sneakers - as in a sneaker-shaped riding toy - perfectly "Kab-sized:") and best of all Trouble, the vintage riding horse on springs.  It was an epic two days.  We are THOROUGHLY exhausted - as are the elder Chalos' who are currently on their drive back home.  

     While the boys were combating the evil attic, the girls took a different, more civilized approach.  No headlamps, fans, gloves, blue jeans, or bug spray was needed.  We settled ourselves into the kid's room and finished packing.  We packed and labeled the kids items, a suitcase of donations for the transition house, a suitcase of must-haves for the Chalos clan, and even got out the stroller and attached tags to it.  Everything is packed and organized (minus Chad's clothes).  For those of you who don't know, I am staying behind (MAJOR sad face) BUT I will get to have an unlimited amount of time with them when they get home.  I will be flying to meet them when they enter the US so that we can all land on Nashville soil together.  It has been a really hard decision but for so many reasons, we know it is the right one.  So if you will, say a prayer for Chad and his parents (who will be accompanying him on this trip) - as they prepare to enter the DRC, and for our kids.  I am praying that they are anticipating us - that God is placing a tenderness in their small, sweet, innocent hearts for their parents - who have waited SO LONG to be united together with them.  Will you join me in that prayer?  

Kristle