Lil' is teaching herself to play the guitar and I love listening to her sweet voice while she plays.

Isn't music an incredible gift from the Lord?!

adventures in faith

A few days ago, David and I were looking at a website regarding Ind*an adoptions. On the website it stated,

"The Ind*a program is a great option for adventurous families!"

hmmmm....

I think that I could have passed as "adventurous" 20 years ago, but now...?

Not so much.

Our God has such a sense of humor,
and He knows just what we need.
He's faithful like that.
I wouldn't have chosen such an "adventurous" option.
But He knew that I needed just this sort of "adventure."

You see,
I needed to grow in faith.
I needed to have my boundaries stretched.
I needed to come to the point of complete dependance upon Him.

I had been relying too much on my self,
on my abilities,
on my capacity to work things out on my own.

I really thought that I had it pretty much together.

But, I didn't.

And He needed to show that to me.
He needed to show me that without Him, I am incapable of anything good. I had been inwardly taking credit for the things that He was doing in my life, instead of falling on my knees in gratitude for all that He had given.

I've been reading (and reading, and re-reading) the last five chapters of Job. It is so beautiful and has been a precious balm to my soul. Job was a righteous man, but pride got in the way. When God made this evident to Job, Job's response was to repent in dust and ashes.

Job didn't try to justify himself. He knew that He had been completely wrong to take credit for what God had done in His life. And Job valued his relationship with God above every other thing. So, Job fell down before his Lord and worshiped, and their relationship was restored.

Our precious Father is teaching me that He is completely faithful.
He always redeems.
He always does good.
It only makes sense to put my complete trust in Him, rather than in my own understanding.

This adoption journey is an "adventure", and I am so very grateful that I can place that "adventure" directly into the very capable hands of the Ever-Faithful One, the All-Together Lovely One, the One Who Loves Beyond Compare.

He is teaching me about true faith.
May I always be willing and ready to follow Him in this kind of "adventure."

generosity

On Friday, we received a grant check in the mail. Compared to the amount that we still need, the check was quite small. But friends, the generosity behind the gift was beyond compare. Along with the check was a note, so lovingly written, that it brought tears to my eyes.

It's true that we lost a large amount of money with David's unexpected work issue. It was discouraging and disappointing to know that the money that could be used to give a child a hope and a future was being used for things that would not last. But, if we hadn't lost the money, we would have missed out on the opportunity to experience such deep love and concern from God's people. So many of you have bought bracelets, purchased t-shirts, or given generously to R.'s adoption fund. We are humbled and grateful in the midst of your love and care.

We thank God for each one of you. You are a gift to us! And your gifts for R. have brought us to our knees, praising the Father for the generosity of strangers and friends. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! You kindness has truly touched our hearts.

the blessing of friendship

 My boys honestly have the most amazing friends. Every single one of them is wonderful, but these three are particularly amazing.

Josh

 Elijah

 Caleb

I mean, really, look at that photo of Caleb!

David had asked me to watch the grill. I was sitting down for a moment, and Caleb came out the back door. So, what did he do then? Did he sit at the picnic table, ready to eat? No! He noticed the grill and started taking care of dinner. Oh my goodness! He was soooo cute (and a talented grill-master, as well).

And listen to some of the things that they wrote on Jadon's birthday cards!

"May the Lord bless you with more of His spirit, wisdom, love, maturity, joy, and a servant's heart."

and

"I cannot say how much of a blessing you are to me. Your smile and energy always make my day brighter...I pray that you will be filled with all spiritual wisdom and understanding and you will have a revelation of his love for you."

These boys truly know how to love at a high level.

They are such a blessing!

It was so much fun having all of the boys (and a couple of girls) over for Jadon's birthday. We truly are blessed with wonderful friends for our children. All of their parents have surely done a great job!

Praying that your children are experiencing the blessing of these kinds of friendships, as well!!!

It's unofficial...

but I now have three 11 year olds!

(We just have to get that last one home with us!)

This one is the last of the three to turn 11! Isn't he absolutely precious?!!!

Oh, how I love my newest 11 year old!!!

We started out celebrating on Tuesday night with Opa, Grammy and Oma.

Oh my goodness! My littlest boy is getting so tall!

On Wednesday morning, David and I took Jadon out for breakfast. Jadon asked if his favorite person in the world (that would be Adam) could join us. I'm so glad that my boys love each other so much. And I LOVE this picture of my three favorite guys!

Jadon picked Lucille's for breakfast. His mom was in heaven! Their food is delicious and they have the best coffee in town.

Oh, sweet Jadon, I love you so much. You are an absolute treasure...you are sweet, silly and full of love. It's so much fun to walk down the hallway at school and hear you call out "I love you Mom. You're the best Mom." Oh my goodness, I never want to forget this. You are full of hugs and kisses and if you get married someday, your wife will be incredibly blessed by your affection.

Today, we're having all the boys from school over at our house to have a full-on boys party. It's gonna be fun!!! Happy 11th birthday, Jadon!! I love you more than words can say!

always enough

Today, we finally got a notice in the mail regarding our 2010 taxes! We will receive a check within 14 days, and it is enough to pay off David's unexpected work debt that I wrote about here and here, pay our agency fee and have some left over to start saving for our next agency fee! Our God truly is so very, very kind. He is always enough and He always provides for our every need. I am learning more each day how to put my faith in the Ever-faithful One. May He be glorified!

Why Do We Weep?

This post from the Orphan Justice Center blog is just beautiful....I think that it may be the best thing that I've ever read about the necessity of orphan ministry (or any ministry!) originating out of prayer, love and the heart of God.

Why Do We Weep?

I can't think of a title for this post!

Oh my goodness gracious.

I was kind of a wreck Friday.

It was R.'s birthday.

It was also exactly one year since David had had a dream,confirming that we should adopt R.

And the 17th (yesterday) was the anniversary of my due date for our daughter, Celeste (who died when I was 20 weeks pregnant).

I was thinking of all of these things when David told me that we got a phone call from Deb.

At that point, I was pretty much a puddle on the floor.

My plan had been to make a fabulous Ind*an meal to celebrate R.'s special day.

But, in my state of mind, it was lucky that we got frozen pizza and Safeway cupcakes (I did manage to make a salad, at least!!).

So, last night, Yana and I decided that we should make the planned-for Ind*an meal for our Sabbath celebration.

Okay, my children are much more creative than I am. Maybe Yana should be a food artist! I love the chopped pepper design!

It was so yummy! And now I am feeling inspired. I really want to master some simple Ind*an dishes that I can make when R. comes home. I soooo want her to feel some level of comfort by having familiar foods to eat. Plus, we all LOVE Ind*an food.

I have some deeper things to share soon. I hope that I can muster up the energy to write about what God is doing in my heart and mind. Our Father is so very good, isn't He?!!!

whew...

Bad news: there was an issue with another family who is in the process of adopting from Ind*a, which could also possibly affect our family.

Good news: it shouldn't be an issue for our family because our file has been "accepted and forwarded." (And hopefully it won't be an issue for the other family, as they plan on appealing the decision.)

(If you have no idea what I am talking about, please see the post below :) )

What could it be?

It is a special day for R. in Ind*a today. I so wish that we could be with her. I spent the day thinking of her, praying for her and buying a couple of special things for her. The kids talked about her from the moment that they woke up this morning and we had cupcakes together this evening to celebrate sweet R.

I have felt for a while now that we would get some news from Ind*a on this day. And guess what?! Our Ind*a coordinator called today, but we weren't home! She said that she wanted to talk about the situation in Ind*a. David called back very soon after her call, but she wasn't available. When I got home, I sent her an email. She emailed back saying that she couldn't call tonight, but would call in the morning.

I will admit, I am nervous. We love this little girl so much. We are completely confident that the Lord lead us to adopt her. We already feel that she is our daughter. But, we also know that God's perfect plan will not be completely realized until He returns. We live in an imperfect world.

Would you please pray? We are leaning on His great love tonight. Thank You, Father, that You never leave us or forsake us. We give ourselves completely to You.

Just two more days...

Just two more days

to get your t-shirt,

to support Haiti Home of Hope and/or Beginning of Life Safe House in Moldova,

and to be entered in the Children's Hope Chest mission trip giveaway.

Click the button below for more info.

Wordless Wednesday (you've got mail)

"It's an orphan planet"

The first time I heard these words, I was a bit offended.

I was at a conference and was listening to a riveting talk by Leif Hedlund. The talk was amazing. I was literally sitting on the edge of my seat as he spoke about the need for a relationship with our heavenly Father.

But then he uttered these words:

"It's an orphan planet."

Oh come on, I thought. That is taking it a bit too far. It's not an orphan planet. We all just think that we can relate to orphans, but their experience is way beyond anything that we could ever dream of.

That was a couple of years ago. And I still think my interpretation is correct...at least sort of.

It is true that children who are actually orphaned experience things that most of us cannot even begin to imagine. But, my perspective has changed since that conference. I am beginning to understand that lack of relationship is the greatest tragedy that could ever befall a human being. We were made for relationship. We thrive in relationship. We need relationship. We were created to have relationship with our heavenly Father.

And so many people are lacking this sort of relationship.

"It's an orphan planet."

I'm not simply talking about praying a prayer of repentance. I am talking about a real, living, breathing relationship with the Father of lights. I am talking about knowing that your Father cares for you beyond comprehension. I am talking about the understanding that you completely belong to Him and He completely belongs to you and you wouldn't have it any other way.

I am beginning to understand that we were made for relationship.

I am beginning to understand that I desperately need this kind of relationship with my Father who loves me beyond compare.

I am beginning to believe that He is a Father who would never leave or forsake me.

I am beginning to live in a way that shows that I am a daughter. I am not an orphan.

I think that I understand, now, what Leif Hedlund meant when he said,
"It's an orphan planet."

But, I pray, precious Father, that you would transform this planet into a planet of sons and daughters who rest in Your glorious relationship of love. I pray that we would realize that we are Your precious children. We are no longer ophans. We belong to You and You belong to us.

 You truly are our Father.

Springtime visitors...c'mon over!

We had such a fun weekend!

 Caleb and Elijah and Grace's friend, Addie, all spent the night on Friday night. Our good friend, Bryan stopped by while we were eating dinner. He used to live on our cul-de-sac and was at our house a lot, so it was wonderful to have him here again. We still get to see him on Sundays and sometimes during the week, but honestly, it's not enough! We all watched the Mighty Macs, then the kids went to bed and Bryan stayed to chat...loved it!

In the morning, David went out to get doughnuts, and the kids all did some cleaning.

Look at these boy's smiles (even while cleaning). They are the best! I love their incredible attitudes.

And these guys...well, I think that they were cleaning the bedroom...not sure, but I think so. Good thing they're so incredibly cute!

(As you can see, combing hair is optional on the weekend.)

Addie and Grace are so sweet together. I *heart* these girls!

As the morning progressed, we ended up with quite a few more kiddos at our house! I love, love, love that all the neighborhood kids come to our house. T. lives next door and has been friends with Lily since they were two years old. Oh, how I love these sunshine girls!

M. is at our house anytime a sport is being played!

Adam is such a great "big brother" to the younger kids who come to our house.

Wow! Look at that hang time (ha! I'm trying to sound like I know something about basketball!).

Caleb is a firework-making pro. Jadon loves to watch Caleb at work.

Hey! Now we get another big kid! David (Bryan's brother) came over to shoot some hoops. He also stayed for lunch and had a praise time with Jadon and Elijah! We are so incredibly blessed with older brothers around here!

Fixing the zipline...it really is Spring!

(Look at that handsome guy up on the ladder...love you honey!)

Just as a side note, three of the four of our reference letters for India mention our tree house and all the kids who come over to play. We did ask the person who talked about the zip line, however, to delete that out of her letter, 'cuz uh...we didn't want to sound too crazy-dangerous around here. :)

love

smiles

Elayne stopped by, as well. Of course, our back yards are connected, so it's really easy to "stop by"!

David test rides the zip line. Don't you love Matthew's t-shirt?! hehehe...it really fits him!

Mmmm...I do have one son who has embraced pacifism.

Ahem...it's not this one!

(Oh Jadon, I LOVE your all-boyishness!)

Elijah-boy...we love you!!!

On Saturday night, we met with our church family...really, really good stuff. And then again on Sunday morning...God is working and speaking and loving all the time. Isn't He so very generous?!

After church, the young single men and women (and a few others) came to our house to play games and talk.

Everyone had a shot at the zip line.

More b-ball.

And surfing for the younger crowd.

Last, but not least, we ended the day with a Rip Curl photo shoot...too cute, girls!

Oh my goodness! I'm so grateful for this spring weather...and especially for all of the wonderful friends that it brings! So, if you're in the area, make sure that you c'mon over! We'll be glad to have you!