Sunday, May 30, 2010

A QUESTION FOR YOU...


HOW DO YOU GET A 7 1/2 YEAR OLD TO STOP SUCKING HER THUMB???
We have tried the bad tasting stuff on your thumb... we stopped after reading the label that said that they should ingest any of it...
Isn't that a little odd seeing as how the thumb is going in their mouth and the idea is that they taste the bad taste??? I don't know...
The crazy thing about this precious girl of mine is that she took a pacifier till she was 2. When she was 3 1/2, we moved in with my parents for a few months after we sold our house. Greg had just left for the seminary to take Greek and we were to follow him down a couple of months later. There was a lot of adjusting going on... new home...no daddy for a couple of months....
Then she saw the son of a woman who my mom had in her Bible study. He had his thumb in his mouth and she tried it.
I specifically remember my mom saying, "Don't worry Sara, there is a lot going on... It won't stick." Now I say, "Yeah, right???"
I don't blame you mom:) I kind of think it is funny that it stuck, I didn't think it would stick either...
So here we are.... she needs to stop... I am tempted to have her wear a mitten all day, every day... would that be mean... it is like 90 degrees here everyday now.
We have told her when she stops we will take the whole family to Incredibly Pizza...
I am open to suggestions...

Thursday, May 27, 2010

LIVING FOR AN AUDIENCE OF ONE








Question for you fellow bloggers... a technical question... why is it that some of the time my posts will come out with line spaces between paragraphs and then other times... not matter how many lines I put between the paragraphs, they all run together? Can anyone help me out with that??? Now onto the regular post...
I wanted to post some more pictures from Mother's Day even though they have nothing to do with this post really... well I guess in a sense they do... Man how I love these kids:)
I don't know what it has been lately but I have felt more under the microscope in a sense. I know that I have said this before that I have NEVER been overly confident. But in the same sense I have never really struggled with too much insecurity. I have felt pretty confident in who God has made me. But lately there are times that I feel the eyes watching... I think that there are numerous things that are leading to me feeling that way...
Does it at all matter that I am married to a pastor? Sometimes I think people may have the wrong impressions of pastor's families. Do we have it all together??? No way! Do we try? Sure:) Haha... no really, we do try to bring Him glory, but with that being said, we struggle and sin just like the next person... I remember when we first moved here. I was 6 mos. pregnant with our 5th child. We had just come from the seminary community, which is kind of living in this Christian bubble. We home schooled. I know people were checking us out to a degree in the front pew. I tried to keep all the kids attentive and not too noisy during church.
Then my Samuel died inside of me... I remember going to church to hear Greg preach just 3 days after I gave birth to my still son. I remember coming in late, (making sure I missed the announcement to everyone before the service about our baby dying) sitting in the very back pew. I remember hearing a newborn crying just a few rows ahead of me. I remember that with that newborns cry my milk came in... and then started a new kind of pain in my chest... a physical pain.... different from the pain of my broken heart. I do also remember being so proud of my husband that he held it together for the most part, while I cried silently in the back pew. Many people have told me that I wasn't the only one crying that day as my husband preached on All Saints Day about the Saints (the believers) that have gone before us... our son being included in that just days earlier.
I know many watched me grieve from that front pew in the following months... But truly at the time, I didn't really care who saw me crying every Sunday. It was what I needed to do. I needed to release some of what I was feeling inside of me. But when you are grieving in somewhat public places you can't help but feeling like you are in a bit of a fish bowl. I am not saying this at all in a bad way... I know that is a part of life... I like to people watch sometimes too:)
I know that there are things that our family chooses to do that are against the norm... like homeschooling for example.... I have never been one to push homeschooling on anyone. I know that it isn't for everyone. I know that it may seem different to many. But what I do know is that it is working for our family for many reasons. We love the flexibility it gives us. We love the time with the daddy of the house that it affords us. We love that it draws our family closer together. We love being with our kids... they are growing up so fast... I am so thankful I have had the opportunity to spend these past years being their mom and their teacher...
With all that being said, I know others look at us homeschooling and wonder....

I know in the past I have felt a little "odd" for my desire to have a larger than normal size family...(really what is normal anyway??:)
I know in the past I have felt little "odd" for my love of natural childbirth...
I know in the past I have felt a little "odd" for my love of natural food and homeopathic remedies....
Did I mention, that I started to grind some of my own grains for flour??? And by the way, I really have enjoyed cloth diapering sweet baby girl:) I know it may ALL sound a little "odd"...
I say all of these things with a smile on my face... they aren't for everybody and that is perfectly fine... but they are parts of me, that make me who God made me to be...
I mentioned a little in a previous post about some things that have been going on in our neighborhood. I will try not to say too much. We had a run in last summer with a mother in our neighborhood over an incident on our tramp with her child. (I of course was in the house and missed the whole thing, although there were many kids out there that witnessed it, and could later tell us what happened) Greg and I went over to apologize for whatever part that Caleb had in it. (We know our Caleb isn't always innocent, but we also know that He wasn't fully to blame, from what we heard from the other kids). This mom has since said bad things about our Caleb to neighbors.... That was the first incident...
Then just recently, I have heard from 2 other neighbors of some things she is saying about Louis that are down right slanderous. Really she out right made up these things. Truly it had my blood boiling... It REALLY had Greg's hot. You don't say those kinds of lies. Once again, I know Louis is not a perfect child, but truly he is a really good kid. Both neighbors who had heard the slanderous comments right away told me, that they knew immediately that it was a lie. I am so thankful that his reputation is speaking louder than her words... but I am still not at all happy about it.... That was the second incident....
Then the other day we were out taking an evening walk taking banana bread to a new neighbor on the other side of our very small neighborhood. Well, the 4 neighborhood dogs were walking with us. (Remember, we are not dog owners... they just like to hang with us) Well this same family had their dog outside and for some crazy reason, 2 of the dogs ran and started fighting with their dog... Just our luck... they knew they weren't our dogs, but laid into us anyways.... Oh my! It was crazy... That was the third incident....
It makes me wonder... is Satan working overtime here? Do we do anything about these slanderous comments? Why does this woman not like us? I have a feeling she doesn't really appreciate or agree with a lot of what we stand for. I want to pray for their family and do, but at the same time, I know that there shouldn't be interaction at all between any of us. That is the safest and best thing right now... we have apologized in the past and it went no where. A part of me can't help but feel like we have only reached out in love, but that we are being targeted a bit by them. I will continue to pray for them and encourage my kids to as well. I am not trying to be overly dramatic... but it is just another one of those things that I think have led to my feeling of being under the microscope...
Sorry for the novel... I know it was a little all over the place...I will try to wrap this up...
As I was running the other day... the Lord again impressed upon my heart... THAT THIS WORLD IS NOT MY HOME... (Praise God for that!) I am not here to please man... I am here to please God. Now in this process, I don't ever want to offensive or come across as unloving. I think we can speak the truth in love. I think we can lead our family in the way we feel God guiding us to lead them... (That will be different for different families:) We pray for His leading, we pray over decisions we need to make, we pray for His guidance. I think if we do that, and feel His leading... THEN WE CAN AND NEED TO LEAD our family BOLDLY in how He has called us to!

I know that in no way can I relate to the persecution that many feel for their faith...who knows maybe someday I will. But for now we have to hold to the convictions we have in our heart and not worry what others think about it.
One of my favorite parts in scripture is from 1st Corinthians.
Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light an momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that FAR outweighs them all.
So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is TEMPORARY, but what is unseen is ETERNAL! 1st Corinthians 4:16-18
So I am going to fix my eyes on the eternal... and not live for this world... BUT LIVE FOR AN AUDIENCE OF ONE!
My Savior Jesus is my audience... I want to bring Him glory... I want to follow Him... I want to obey Him... He is my audience... and in the mean time I won't worry about what the world may think...

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

BACK HOME...

MY SISTER IN LAW KATY, MY COLLEGE ROOM MATE SAMANTHA, AND MYSELF
HAVE YOU EVER SEEN SUCH A HUGE TADPOLE... THIS ONE MUST BE ON HIS WAY TO BEING A BIG BULLFROG:)


ANNA AND SOPHIE WITH TOBY AND EZRA


JOJO AND TITUS



A BUNCH OF THE COUSINS AT LE DUCS EATING CUSTARD... THIS IS MINUS THE OTHER 8 COUSINS ON MY SIDE OF THE FAMILY.

I am having a bit of a bloggers block... I have a couple of posts that I started but have yet to finish... Here are a whole lot of random thoughts thrown together:)



Summer is here... The heat is on... The 90 degrees we will be having all this week... kind of makes me long for the beautiful summer days up at Pretty Lake where we used to live prior to seminary. Summer is here, but school is still in session in our home. We are trying like crazy to finish everything up by the end of next week. (Well actually, Anna will have reading to do all summer) Besides that all we have left is some History and Science.



The bigger boys have put up our big blow up water slide the last 2 days. They were having a ball with that. I love to hear them laughing from inside the house. It makes my heart glad.


We have had some craziness going on in our neighborhood lately. I love where we live... it is perfect for us. But, people are people, we have never had situations like this before. I started a post about it, because 1. I sort of needed to vent and 2. I am just not sure how to feel about it (actually that isn't really true, I know how I feel about it, but I am not sure how to remedy the situation or how to remedy how I feel about it) I will try to get that post up soon and who knows maybe you will all have advice.


We started some new services at our church that have me super happy and excited. They added a more liturgical service at 11:00 and then are making the contemporary service more contemporary. I love that we can do different things to meet the needs of the people. I love that there are different styles of worship.... Sometimes I feel like I am working with a bit of a brain deficit. There are times during the liturgical service that I literally have to strain so hard to understand what is being said. I sometimes feel overly challenged just to understand the wording that I truly can't really worship my Lord and Savior... so the change I think will be great for everyone. I can truly appreciate both styles of worship, but I think that God created each of us personally, with a heart that ticks with or to certain things.
I am really looking forward to starting the summer Beth Moore Bible study at church in a couple of weeks. Last year I felt like she had truly written Esther just for me... it was so good! I can't wait:)


Can I just say that once again I am astounded by the Biggest Loser. (I am not a big TV watcher, but that is one show I do enjoy watching.) If those people can drop the pounds that they do.... I think I can put the EXTRA COOKIE DOWN when needed. It is truly inspiring. The winner lost 264 pounds in 7 months just by good old fashioned diet and exercise. Isn't that amazing? WOW!

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

A BUSY WEEK UP NORTH AND A PRAYER REQUEST

What a week, it has been busy, but fun! I will try to post some pictures once I get home. I usually don't mind the drive, but I am not really looking forward to the 12 hour drive back tomorrow. But hey, we are getting that much desired fish fry tonight. Maybe that will give us a little extra energy for the road:) (Either that or it will put us in a sleepy state the whole way home from eating too much.)

Mostly, we have been hanging out with the family. My parents have done great with all the extra noise and commotion. My two brothers live on the same plot of land as my parents, so there has been a lot of cousin time:) I also was able to spend a day with my little brother, his wife, and their four boys. It was the first time we had met their youngest, Luther, who is just 5 mos younger than what Samuel would have been. I hadn't seen them since Samuel's memorial service. It was hard in some respects, but a really good thing. (Thanks Josh and Lynds for making the effort to come down... it was soooo nice to see you again... the kids had a ball with the boys.) I also had the chance to see a couple sweet friends that I have had forever. Reb and Sam I had such a nice time visiting with both of you.

Last Sunday my sweet friend from High School, Amy, and I went to visit the mother of a good friend of ours. She was rediagnosed with cancer last fall. Honestly, this woman is one of the most joyful, full of life people I have known. She always made you feel so special and that you were loved when you would see her. The minute I had heard that she was rediagnosed... I don't know what it was, but I immediately thought of her scooping up my little Samuel in Heaven. I pictured her loving on him, like a grandma would. (I know Samuel isn't missing out on anything in Heaven, it is perfect there, but for some reason, that thought brought me joy and comfort)

Well, just a week before we saw sweet Nancy, she was still living on her own in her house. Now she is in hospice at her daughter's house and sleeping most of the day. It has gone very quickly. We were able to sit and visit with her daughters while she slept on the other side of the room. What sweet ladies. I was struck by the thought of what a precious gift they are giving their mom, to surround her with love these days. And what a precious gift they are giving their kids. I know it has to be incredibly difficult, but at the same time so precious to walk this part of the journey with their mom and grandma. Nancy has a very strong faith, that is such a blessing to know. Before we left, her daughter woke her up and Amy and I knelt on both sides of her and talked to her. She could only whisper back. When her daughter told her we were there she just whispered, "I love it!" Even what she whispered was SO HER, such an enthusiastic comment. I was able to pray with and for her. She kept saying, over and over again to us, that she wished she could talk. We really just wanted to be able to tell her what a dear, precious woman she was, that we were praying for her, and that she was loved.

If you think of it, would you please pray for this sweet woman, Nancy, and her family. Pray that she would feel the Lord's presence with her, and that she wouldn't be in pain. She has run the race well, and is so close to receiving the prize, eternal life with her savior. Because of her faith and belief in our Jesus, and all that he did for her on the cross, she will soon be in His presence forever.

In the last entry of her caring Bridge page, she wrote that she fore sees her children holding her hand and handing her hand right to the hand of her Savior. Precious! I am so glad she is surrounded by the love of her children and grandchildren right now. Thanks for praying for this precious lady!!

Friday, May 14, 2010

WE MADE IT AND A POST FROM MOLLY PIPER

We made it up here safe and sound, but have been so busy... I will get a post up of all the stuff we are doing at some point...

Many of you may know Molly Piper... she lost her baby Felicity who was stillborn 2 1/2 years ago. She is married to Abraham Piper, who is the son of John Piper. I am so bad with the computer and am not good at linking back to particular posts on people's blogs. A couple of weeks ago she wrote a post that just hit my heart. I emailed her and asked if I could share it here. I am so thankful that she allowed me to do that. Her post says it all so well... I could not have articulated it any better myself... and seeing how the last 2 days have held more tears than I have shed in a while... it seems fitting that I post it today. Molly's blog is http://www.mollypiper.com/

Feel free to go by and congratulate her on her pregnancy with twins...I am so thrilled for her.
Here is her post....

Brokenhearted Love: Give It, Live It.

I’ve gotten a lot of emails from people about grief in the last two and a half years. Some I’ve been able to answer personally, some I haven’t. There’s really no formula for how I decide which ones to answer and which ones not to. It’s more of an in-the-moment thing, where I have 15 minutes and can pour my soul into a response to a complete stranger.

Many of the emails come from people who know someone who just lost a baby–someone from church, a family member, a close friend. That’s probably because the people who just lost the baby are not even sure what’s happening and are completely and utterly in shock. The people on the outside have their heads on straight enough, relatively speaking, to put an email together and ask for help, or even just commiseration.

The one thing I’ve found myself writing to these people over and over again is this: Give brokenhearted love. Ask God to give you a broken heart. That will go further with your friend than any meal or house-cleaning ever could. Granted, I think meals and house-cleaning are immensely important to offer, and some people will be particularly gifted in giving those things. But if you want to go deeper into the loss with your friend, you’re going to have to be heartbroken.

For one thing, grief is really isolating. Especially when it’s a baby who is stillborn, people can sometimes think things like, “Oh, well the baby never lived outside the womb. It’s not like they knew that baby or anything.” And when you come home without a baby, there’s very little evidence that that child ever existed. So when you’re going through the hell of grief, it can feel like you were the only one who lost that baby, and that everyone else’s life has just moved on.
And in some sense, that’s true. Most people are not marking the days and weeks the same way as you are. But there will be a few who will.

And I suppose that’s who I’m writing for, the people who remember.

In our culture, people don’t like to talk about death. And dead babies??? Forget it. That’s because it’s horrifying. I’ll never forget how terrified I was to look at Felicity for the first time. And she was my child.

But brokenhearted love will choose to take on the horror and bear it with you.

In the first few weeks after we lost Felicity, a stranger who I didn’t know (but who went to our church) was signed up to bring me a meal. I kind of had my brave face on to answer the door, get through the interaction, get the food, exchange a few pleasantries back and forth, and get back to my existence.

But there was something very different about this person. As she handed me the food, she was sobbing. I’m not exaggerating here–tears flowing down her face. I was completely disarmed. I remember eventually she asked me if she could see Felicity’s room, if we had it set up. And before I knew it, I was climbing the stairs with this complete stranger, taking her into one of the most sacred spaces in my home.

It felt kind of crazy, but it felt safe. Because she was heartbroken. Just like me, heartbroken.
And even just last week, I had someone tell me that she stopped at Felicity’s grave. And she told me, through her tears, what she was thinking and feeling about that. It’s been two and a half years. She’s never told me anything like that before. And so we stood in her back yard and cried real tears together.

This is the bravery of brokenhearted love.

People who are grieving need to know that they’re not alone. They need to know that their loss is somehow your loss too. Tell them that you visited the cemetery–not for brownie points, but because you want to remember with them. Tell them that you cried in the bathtub the other day. Tell them that when you hear a certain song it takes the breath out of your lungs.

I’ll warn you: you might cry when you tell them these things. HALLELUJAH! You have NO idea what that will mean to someone who’s grieving. Let it FLOW! What are we holding it together for anyway? So our mascara doesn’t run? So we won’t feel embarrassed or uncomfortable? There’s a reason that lump forms in your throat. It’s because you’re holding something in that wants to come out!

So if you’re wondering what you can give your grieving friend, I know it sounds totally cliche, but…give them your heart. Lay it bare. Entering into their pain and sharing your experience of the loss will be profoundly comforting.

I’ve made it through the last two years and seven months because of brokenhearted love. It’s been a gift to me, from those who were willing to give it.

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEET CALEB

SWEET LITTLE 6 LB 14 OZ MIRACLE... HE WAS OUR SMALLEST BABY:)
CALEB AT 5 YEARS OLD

GREG AND I ALWAYS LAUGH AT THIS PICTURE... IT LOOKS LIKE CALEB HAS A LITTLE MUSTACHE.



OUR SWEET CALEB TURNS 11 TODAY.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY BUDDY.
CALEB WILL HAVE TO PICK A DIFFERENT DAY TO BE KING FOR THE DAY AS WE WILL BE IN THE CAR ALL DAY DRIVING UP TO WISCONSIN FOR A LITTLE VACATION.
WHEN THEY ARE KING OR QUEEN FOR THE DAY, THEY GET TO PICK THE MEALS FOR THE DAY... MY RULE IS THAT ONLY ONE MEAL CAN BE DESSERT, AND IT ALMOST ALWAYS IS ICE CREAM FOR BREAKFAST:) MAYBE SINCE WE WILL BE IN WISCONSIN HE CAN PICK CUSTARD FOR BREAKFAST...EMPORERS KITCHEN FOR LUNCH... AND A FISH FRY FOR DINNER. DO YOU THINK I CAN WORK THAT IN??? KIDDING, HE WILL GET TO PICK:)
DADDY GETS TO HOLD DOWN THE FORT WHILE THE KIDS AND I GO. IN FACT AS I GET READY TO POST THIS... HE WAS BORN RIGHT NOW 11 YEARS AGO... AT 12:23 AM.
WE ARE SO VERY THANKFUL TO GOD FOR THIS SPECIAL YOUNG MAN... HE BRINGS SO MUCH JOY TO OUR LIVES... WHAT A GIFT!

Sunday, May 9, 2010

6 REASONS I LOVE MOTHER'S DAY

I AM NOT SURE WHY BUT BLOGGER WON'T LET ME UPLOAD ALL THE PICTURES ONTO ONE POST... SO I HAD TO DO PART OF IT ON THIS POST AND THEN CONTINUE WITH ANOTHER.

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY TO ALL OF YOU MOTHERS OUT THERE. YOUR JOB IS AN AMAZING AND HUGELY CHALLENGING ONE. KEEP PERSEVERING... KEEP RUNNING THE RACE...

HERE ARE 6 REASONS I AM THANKING GOD FOR MOTHER'S DAY!


12 YEAR OLD TENDERHEARTED, FIRSTBORN LOUIS. I AM NOT SURE I HAVE EVER SEEN A CHILD AS KIND AND SENSITIVE AS HE IS. ( I MEAN THAT IN A GOOD WAY:) HE HAS BEEN SUCH A SHOULDER FOR THIS MOMMA TO LEAN ON SINCE THE DEATH OF SAMUEL. HE IS AN ABSOLUTE ANIMAL LOVER, WANTS TO BE A VET WHEN HE GET'S OLDER. HE HAS A GREAT SENSE OF HUMOR, AND HELPS OUT SO MUCH AROUND HERE. I DON'T KNOW WHAT I WOULD DO WITH OUT MY LATE NIGHT LAUNDRY FOLDER:) HE IS GROWING INTO A YOUNG MAN RIGHT BEFORE MY EYES.
I AM SO THANKFUL THAT GOD OPENED MY WOMB 13 YEARS AGO AND SAW FIT TO BLESS US WITH THIS SPECIAL YOUNG MAN.


THIS PICTURE SAYS IT ALL ABOUT CALEB.... CONSTANT COMMOTION AND ALWAYS FILLED TO THE BRIM WITH ENERGY. HE IS OUR TEXAS TORNADO. HE STILL WANTS TO BE A CANDY MAKER WHEN HE GROWS UP, IS INCREDIBLY GOOD WITH NUMBERS, VERY SELF MOTIVATED AND HARD WORKING. I THINK I WOULD HAVE TO SAY THAT HE IS THE BEST CAR PACKER IN THE FAMILY:) CALEB IS THE ONLY CHILD THAT CAME EASILY TO US... AND WE ALWAYS LAUGH BECAUSE HE WOULD HAVE MADE IT HERE ONE WAY OR ANOTHER, IT IS JUST IN HIS PERSONALITY... I AM SO THANKFUL TODAY FOR THIS BUNDLE OF LOVE AND ENERGY.

6 REASONS I LOVE MOTHER'S DAY:) CONTINUED...

MY SWEET TENDER HEARTED ANNA...
SHE IS SILLY, SUCH A GREAT BIG SISTER, A HUGE HELP TO HER MAMA, VERY COMPASSIONATE, LOVES TO HELP CLEAN THE BATHROOM, GENEROUS, AND HAS SUCH A LITTLE MAMA HEART. SHE BRINGS ME GREAT JOY. I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE THE YOUNG LADY GOD IS GOING TO FASHION HER INTO.

OH MY JOJO, HE IS MY DELIGHT... TRULY ONE OF THE HAPPIEST KIDS I KNOW, SILLY AS ALL GET OUT, LOVING, LOVING, LOVING, LOVES TO UNLOAD THE DISHWASHER, AND HE IS AT THE STAGE WHERE ALMOST EVERYTHING OUT OF HIS MOUTH MAKES YOU LAUGH OR SMILE.
HE MAKES MY HEART GLAD:)

MY PRECIOUS SAMUEL, SAFE IN OUR SAVIOR'S ARMS TODAY. THIS LITTLE BOY IN AN INSTANT FOREVER CHANGED ME AND MY HEART AS A MOTHER! TODAY, AS I SAT IN SAMUEL'S GARDEN THAT WE PLANTED FOR HIM IN OUR YARD , I JUST SOAKED IN THE FEELING THIS MOTHER'S DAY OF HOW MUCH I MISS MY SON, HOW MUCH MY ARMS STILL ACHE FOR HIM, HOW THE LONGING FOR HIM IN MY HEART HASN'T CHANGED ONE BIT IN THE LAST 18 MOS.

I AM SO THANKFUL TODAY THAT THIS LIFE ON EARTH IS SO SO SO VERY SHORT COMPARED TO THE ETERNITY WE WILL SPEND TOGETHER IN OUR SAVIOR'S PRESENCE.



SWEET BABY GIRL... HERE SHE IS WAVING TO HER PAPA... SEE SHE IS REAL:) THIS LITTLE GIRL ADDS SO MUCH JOY TO A HOME THAT NEEDED HER SO MUCH. WE ALL SAY SHE IS A LITTLE SPICY... FULL OF THE HOOTSPA:) SHE IS SUCH A LOVER, CONTINUALLY COMES UP FOR HUGS AND KISSES.

(I REMEMBER THE DAY WE GOT HER AND SHE REALLY WANTED NOTHING TO DO WITH ME. THE KIDS WERE CRYING ABOUT IT AND KEPT ASKING GREG IF SHE WOULD EVER LIKE MAMA?) THAT DAY AND THOSE FEELINGS ARE A DISTANT MEMORY... WE LOVE THIS LITTLE GIRL WITH ALL OF US... ALL THAT WE ARE ... IN OUR HEARTS SHE IS OURS... WE JUST WANT TO MAKE IT OFFICIAL:)




WE HAD A GREAT MOTHER'S DAY. I AM SO THANKFUL FOR ALL MY KIDS... IN MY HEART I KNOW THAT THERE ARE ANOTHER COUPLE LITTLE SOULS UP THERE IN HEAVEN, THAT WE WISH COULD HAVE STAYED LONGER HERE WITH US... JOEL, THE BABY WE WERE TO ADOPT LAST SUMMER THAT DIED, AND THE BABY I MISCARRIED BACK IN FEBRUARY... I WOULD HAVE BEEN ABOUT 18 WEEKS ALONG HAD THAT BABY STAYED. I KNOW SOME MAY FIND THAT FUNNY THAT I STILL THINK ABOUT THEM OR MENTION THEM, BUT FOR ME LIFE IS LIFE AND I VALUE IT NO MATTER HOW MANY DAYS GOD CHOSE FOR THAT LIFE TO STAY HERE ON EARTH.

WHEN I WAS A CHILD... I KNEW THE THING I WANTED MOST IN LIFE WAS TO BE A MOM. WHEN WE STRUGGLED WITH INFERTILITY FOR A FEW YEARS BEFORE LOUIS ARRIVED AND EVEN NOW AS WE LONG AND WAIT FOR ANOTHER CHILD FROM MY WOMB... I AM REMINDED OF ALL THE WOMEN WHO ARE LONGING TO BE MOMS BUT AREN'T YET, OR THOSE WOMEN WHO ARE MOMS, YET THEIR CHILDREN ARE ALREADY IN HEAVEN... MY HEART HURTS FOR THEM AND GOES OUT TO THEM TODAY. I REMEMBER HOW IT FEELS TO WONDER IF YOU WILL EVER MOTHER CHILDREN HERE ON EARTH.

I AM SO THANKFUL THAT THE LORD CHOSE TO OPEN MY WOMB BACK IN 1996. I AM TRULY IN AWE OF THE LORD'S WORK IN BLESSING ME IN THE WAY HE HAS... AND NOW TO HAVE SWEET BABY GIRL HERE HAS OPENING MY EYES IN A NEW WAY AS TO WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A MOM. I DIDN'T HAVE TO CARRY HER INSIDE OF ME TO HAVE THAT FIERCE DEEP LOVE FOR HER. ALL MY CHILDREN HAVE TAUGHT ME SO MUCH AND I AM SO THANKFUL TO GOD FOR THE INCREDIBLY GIFT THAT EACH ONE IS TO ME.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY ALL!




Saturday, May 8, 2010

FIREHOUSE DINNER

WE WERE BLESSED WITH A GIFT OF DINNER AT THE FIREHOUSE. SOMEONE AT CHURCH HAD BID ON THIS AT THE YOUTH AUCTION AND THEN THEY GAVE THE GIFT OF AN EVENING AT THE FIREHOUSE TO OUR FAMILY. THEY FIGURED THE KIDS WOULD ENJOY IT, AND BOY WERE THEY RIGHT... WE HAD A BALL.
MR. THOMAS, THE FIREFIGHTER FROM OUR CHURCH WHO DONATED THE DINNER EVEN LET THE KIDS SPRAY THE WATER HOSE.
WE HAD A DELICIOUS STEAK DINNER... YUMMY!

BUT THE MOST AMAZING THING WAS THE SIGHT IN THE KITCHEN AFTER DINNER. I HAVE NEVER IN MY LIFE SEEN SUCH A THING. THE MINUTE THEY WERE DONE EATING, ALL THE MEN, AND YES I MEAN ALL THE MEN JUMPED UP AND WERE IN THE KITCHEN CLEANING UP. I KNOW I LOOKED A LITTLE GOOFY CATCHING A PICTURE OF THAT, BUT I SERIOUSLY COULDN'T BELIEVE IT. THEY HAD AN ASSEMBLY LINE GOING AND IN MINUTES HAD ALL THE DISHES WASHED AND DRIED BY HAND. IT WAS AWESOME. I TOLD GREG, WE ARE STARTING SOMETHING NEW AT OUR HOUSE... AFTER DINNER EVERYONE HELPS ALL AT ONCE TILL THE JOB IS DONE... :) I CAN'T WAIT.

MRS. THOMAS, ANNA AND JOJO


GREG GOT A CHANCE TO PUT ON ALL THE FIREMEN GEAR. SWEET BABY GIRL WAS A BIT FREAKED OUT BY THAT.
WE EVEN GOT TO ALL TAKE A RIDE IN THE FIRETRUCK.
IT WAS SUCH A NICE DAY. THE WEATHER WAS BEAUTIFUL AND WE SPENT IT TOGETHER. GREG EVEN POKED HIS HEAD BACK OUT OF THE BEDROOM TONIGHT WHILE I WAS SITTING AT THE COMPUTER AND SAID, "I HAD FUN WITH YOU TODAY." THAT MADE MY HEART MELT. EVEN THOUGH HE AND I DIDN'T REALLY HAVE ANY ALONE TIME TODAY, IT WAS JUST SUCH A NICE DAY OF ENJOYING FAMILY TIME TOGETHER. GETTING TO SEE THE KIDS EXPERIENCE THE FIREHOUSE TONIGHT WAS SUCH A TREAT TOO. WE ARE BLESSED!

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

UPDATE ON SWEET BABY GIRL

It is just me and the baby girl tonight:) Greg has all of the others at the baseball game in town so I figured I would give a little update on the situation with sweet baby girl.

Yesterday we were blessed with good news from the Supreme court referee in our state... They ruled with the agency and denied having the appeal from the others heard by the Supreme Court. This was really good for us. Basically it could still be a long road, but this potentially shortened it by another 3-4 mos which is what it would have been just for this appeal to be heard. So we are really thankful for that... It is a small victory that is for sure.

After I heard, I went to put her down for a nap and had a tearful moment of relief. Each little step of the way is another little hurdle to overcome. And this ruling just gave my heart of moment of taking pure joy that she may really be ours someday. It really made me wonder how I will react if we do get to keep her at the end of all of this... Oh my... let the floodgates open:)

So I thank you for all of your prayers. There will be a couple more hearings this month regarding her. Nothing we need to participate in, but that will affect her situation. With that being said we put in our petition for adopting her. It is hard to believe that if this were a normal situation that we would be able to finalize our adoption in about a little over a month. I know that won't happen, but I am not holding out hope that God won't move some mountains to allow this to come to a close sooner rather than later... That would be a welcome miracle:) We will see...

Thanks for continuing to pray for this precious little girl we are loving having with us in our home... praying that she will be ours forever!

Saturday, May 1, 2010

HOMESCHOOL CONFERENCE and 18 MONTHS

LOOK WHO MY DATE WAS FOR THE CONFERENCE:)
LOOK WHO ALSO IS IN DESPERATE NEED OF A HAIRCUT:)
JOJO WAS THRILLED TO BE PULLING THE BOOK BAG...


TRACY, MY SWEET BLOG FRIEND AND HER PRECIOUS DAUGHTER TO BE:)


JOJO EATING HIS FIRST GYRO:)
Tonight before I wrote this post I looked again at my Now I lay Me Down to Sleep pictures of our time with Samuel. We have pictures of Samuel all over the house... but tonight I just felt the need to look at them in detail; to gaze over the details of him... the peach fuzz on his face, the rosy red lips, the turned out little toe... all of it. I cried for him all over again... the ache in my arms is still there for me son... so with that I write this post... it is a little all over the place:)
I had an absolutely delightful day on Friday at the Home school conference. Initially the whole family planned on going to the city, it was a couple hours drive for us, but we decided for many reasons it was probably best that I just go... Since I was only shopping and not really attending the conference, I figured that it may not be the easiest place for Greg to keep everyone busy. Next year though maybe we will all go and actually take in the conference, the kids programs and the shopping. I always try to get all my books ordered for the next year and it is so nice to be able to see all of the books right in front of me before I actually buy them. It is always a huge relief to have them ordered and ready to go for the next year... then when summer rolls around we can just enjoy the summer and the big stuff is behind us...
Anyways, Jojo really wanted to come with me. I am so blessed by that little boy. He is the best natured kid. Truly, he is the kid who is frequently saying, "This is the best day of my life mama... the sun is so bright and shiny." Or like on Friday when he said, "This is the best day of my life mama... I had my first Gyro." He is generally almost always happy and finds great joy in the REALLY little things in life and it is so absolutely precious. We had a ball driving there, walking the city streets, and shopping, shopping, and shopping. He was such a good sport. The great thing is that at lots of the vendors they have bowls of candy out... I know is that bad or what?... but it was incredibly easy to keep him tied over with a little treat here and there. He thought the nachos for lunch were awesome and the slushy even better. It was a day of indulging with Jojo and it was a ball.
One of the definite highlights for me was meeting my blog friend Tracy... now I can say she is a real life friend:) She lost her 2 year old son Jacob just 2 months before we lost Samuel so we have had a lot of things in common over the last 18 mos. She is an encouragement to me, she has such a strong faith. There has been many occasions that after I blogged about something she said just the thing I needed to hear. It was funny, I recognized her right away and gave her a big hug... and we just started chatting like old friends. I know that sounds very cliche, but it was true. We talked about the two baby girls we are both hoping to adopt and of course we talked of their big brothers Samuel and Jacob. It was so nice to finally meet her.
Just having met Tracy for the first time, as I was driving home, I was overcome with emotion as I thought about the blessing that all my new friends have been to me. I have made friends in places and ways I would NEVER before have thought possible. I would never have dreamt that I would stop and stay with a blog friend I had never met in person before, yet when I stayed with Tonya in GA back it January, it was like we had known each other forever and felt totally like the natural thing to do... I could have stayed days:) I am just so thankful that the Lord saw fit to bless me with people along this journey that know exactly what I have experienced and still experience. What a gift that has been to me.
Lord, 18 mos have passed since I met my son face to face and held that precious little one. How can it be that long Father... but I smile knowing that means I am 18 mos closer to seeing Him and you for eternity. Thank you Jesus for knowing exactly who and what I have needed and for providing it along this journey. There were days Lord, no months Lord, in this new place that I longed for you to provide people, your people Lord, to minister to me. It took so much longer than I wanted God, it was so much harder than I ever dreamed even possible. I was alone Lord, I felt so alone, but Lord you were there... in the darkness and total loneliness you were there. You were carrying me and sustaining me, though it felt like it was by a thread... God if you are that thread Lord then it is enough. I could NEVER have said that a year ago, but I can today Lord. You are enough! Just being able to utter those words feels miraculous to me God...
Father, the longer I live, the more I realize the less I really know your ways... I think... no I know they are far far beyond my comprehension... Yet you know what I need before I have even known that I needed it. Lord though the growing and stretching has been incredibly painful and still is, thank you for those growing pains. Lord I would have it no other way. If this is what I get as a result of being Samuel's mom here on earth for those 9+ mos... I will take it Father, it is worth it, He is so worth it. As I looked tonight again Father, at the close up pictures of my precious son, I saw anew your beautiful miraculous creation that you grew within me. Father, even though 18 mos have passed and it feels like as His mommy, I am the only one who really remembers Him like I do, that is hard God, so hard. I feel like his life left this huge impression but it feels like a gaping hole in my heart. Even those I can feel the edges of that wound starting to heal, it still bleeds so easily. All of this because of that 9 lb 2 oz miracle you gave us for a time and took so quickly back to yourself. What a precious gift that I will forever treasure and cherish... Forever Father till you reunite us in your presence! Thank you for using this trial to grow me and grow my compassion for others. Lord, please continue to use this pain for your purposes... don't waste this pain... use it Father however you see fit... and come Lord Jesus Come, we are ready Father... ready for YOU FATHER!