The Girls

Warning long post:

The last 7 months Dom & I have had my niece, 3 & her sister 7, living with us. Many changes came with that, especially our work & life balance. We had to change to accommodate. For many years it's just been us & our careers. All in a day that changed. We had people inspecting our home, asking us deep questions about us individually & as a couple, filled out paper work after paper work. Quite a whirlwind, but we owned it. Within the 1st week we had them both enrolled in school, doctor appointments, dentist appointment & enrolled in dance & tumbling classes. There were some things that took more time. For example, getting the 7 year old in after school program took weeks so Dom & I had to alternate leaving work early. Even more lengthy process was getting the girls accustomed to the change. Mostly, our rules & lifestyle. Things like bedtimes, eating veggies & brushing their hair & teeth regularly seemed like torture, but after a few weeks they got it, we got it & it was good. This past weekend we moved them back in with their mother. Bitter sweet moment. We will continue to pray for them & their parents every day for guidance & stregth.

Over the course of 7 months Dom & I worked, traveled out of the country, went to the beach, traveled to concerts & kept up our regular schedule as much as possible. Things that would have not been possible without support. We couldn't have survived our regular & traveling schedules otherwise.

Niesha, you already know how I feel about you. I think this time has left you feeling experienced & exhausted. And honestly it should. You like me have chosen to wait for children & so your lifestyle had to adjust with ours, but thanks for being my there every second of every day, my sister & my friend through this time. I think you understand now after doing this how I felt with you & zack, now kiah & zeriah just how tired I was as a young adult. Sorry, not sorry :)

We didnt have much support during this time, but the small support system we did have was welcoming & plenty. My daddy, stepmom & sister Caylee you three stepped in to support us eventhough you arent directly related to these girls. From buying them clothes, gifts, cooking, crafting, everything. Even the many times you guys checked in to see if Dom & I needed to have a date, that meant so much. We thank you! I know the girls enjoyed the times they've had with you all. Dom & I truly appreciate it and will never forget it. We owe you big time!

To Doms parents, you didn't owe us or the girls anything, but the times we were in your presence thank you for making them feel apart of the family. For all the times you called to ask about & talk to them. Thank you.

Dom, I dont even know how to thank you for taking this on with me. You are amazing, you're an awesome role model & father. The girls truly benefitted by having you these last 7 months. There were many days when I would just look at you owning it as I struggled to pull it together & I would feel so guilty because you didnt have to, but you did it full out. You taught them prayers & why it's important. You taught them respecting others & calling adults by their appropriate names. Those are just some of the many things I hope they remember.

As for my self, I write this not for praise, but to share what I've learned through this experience. One important lesson I've learned is to meditate...especially over the serenity prayer. You can't stress over the things you can't control. But the things you can control do better than you think you can. People will be who they want to be & things will happen. It's how you respond & support (the innocent) in this case. Another lesson, use the support you have. Those people that step up & you can depend on those are great people. Let them help. Last, but most importantly we have to do better as a society, community, family to be the best we can be. There are children watching us. As parents, aunts, uncles, grandparents & other influencers to kids we have to be better, be more involved, present & make better decisions. Push our youth to strive for greatness. They are watching & learning every second. What they see & learn is what they will become. They are the next generation & will care for us & the next generation someday. And quite frankly I'm scared of what that will look like.