All Good Things Must Come to an End!

Spring Break is officially over and so went my dreams of decorating, painting, scrapbooking, cleaning and reorganizing! I do suffer from this disease of "unrealistic expectations!" I tend to forget that I still have a family and a home that needs to be taken care of. I did get to sleep in everyday :-), found a chair for my family room at Odd Lots, enjoyed having my quiet time at the coffee shop, spent a couple hours talking to my friend who lives across the country, and spent 4 hours one morning reconnecting with 2 dear friends. And even though I really didn't get to the things I dreamed of doing, I also finally got caught up on my grading and lessons plans for the year! Yeah!

The kids enjoyed time with their friends, playing games, a pizza/movie night with mom, lots of Webkins time, and just having NO school! It really was a great week!

It's Spring Break!!!

I don't know who is more excited about Spring Break, but I think it could just be me!! Yes R is relieved to be finished with another quarter and the kids are overjoyed to not have school for a whole week! However, I just want to accomplish all those things that never get done, because I have to do school--- things like deep-cleaning, completing my lesson plans, organizing, decorating, and scrap- booking!

We had originally planned to escape for a few days of family time by heading up to the Ford Museum and Greenfield Village in Detroit. Our kids love history and we have been thinking that this would be a great experience for them. However, this past week we discovered that the village isn't open until April, so this family excursion was postponed and we headed to to Great Wolf Lodge Sunday night.

We had such a terrific time!! Even the little girls were able to ride all of the biggest slides, except for one -- and they loved them. There is something special about their glee-filled laughter as they spun down those slides! N spent lots of time shooting hoops and M just enjoyed it all, except for the hoops!

R and I both kept imagining the boys here with us and what that will be like. We cannot wait to share all of this, and more, with them.

Happy Easter!

"He is risen, He is risen indeed!"

It was a laid-back, peaceful Easter in our household-- so nice! We still haven't colored our Easter eggs, but we have talked about what it would have been like to have been there when Jesus was alive, we have worshiped in His house together, and we focused on His word together.

With R finishing his second quarter of his PhD program and then traveling for work last week, we were in desperate need of some family time! So even though we were struggling with water in our basement, we had a wonderful weekend! R's parents joined us for Easter dinner and the traditional Easter Egg hunt Sunday afternoon.

I love being a mom!

I LOVE being a mom! That said, there has never been a more difficult job that I have ever had than being a mom! Would I do it all over again? You bet! God is using my children to refine me, to draw me unto Himself, and to teach me all that I failed to learn before. I only hope my failures don't hold my children back.

There is nothing more special than a squeeze around the neck from these precious kiddos or a note just thanking me for being their mom. There is great joy in their laughter. I love watching them work together to a common goal, and I so appreciate they thoughtfulness they have for each other. I enjoy seeing how quick they are to share, and I love their teachable little hearts. But you know, I am so grateful that my kids are so forgiving. They quickly forgive me when I have broken their little hearts or even hurt their feelings. What a wonderful picture of Christ.

I am so very thankful for my kids!

Basketball Comes to An End

No one prepared me for the challenge of having your children play sports! It's not that our kids are new to it, but the competition increases quickly once they are in the upper elementary grades! N had 3 games between 2 nights this week -- all for the championship. The pulled out the first game winning by a few points. Game 2 they won in overtime by one basket-- the one N put up. The third game they lost by one point -- in the last minute taking 2nd place. Great job guys! I am so glad I survived the season!

N had a two great coaches who demonstrated great sportmanship. He made some great friends this year, and I know he hope to keep in touch with these guys this summer. His coaches plan to get a few of them together this summer to keep playing.

The bigger win this season however was the inner victories that N won on the court. Self-control when the kids were down right vicious, self-control when the refs made some really poor calls, wanting to quit because he usually had 2-3 guys on him all the time, and digging deep to find the determination to give it his best no matter what was happening. Great job N!

Time

My daughter has been reading a book called "God's Blogs" and several days ago gave it to me with a section marked "for mom to read." The topic ---TIME. The book is designed as if it is God talking to us on a blog. My daughter, and in fact all my kids, are always wanting more time with me -- and unfortunately, I am usually saying things like "soon, maybe later, or after I get this done." This book reminded me that "there is no such thing as free time." Time was created by God for us to give it back to Him. It's not free, because for every minute we use - we have to give something up. There are plenty of time busters in my life, and I thank my daughter for this reminder. God has only given me so much time, and what I do with it can affect eternity.

My Lesson in Fiction

One of my most favorite authors is Karen Kingsbury. Never before have I encountered an author who challenges me so much spiritually through fiction. I just finished the book "Someday". Here I found myself relating so much to the character Katy who had grown up as a Christian and encountered the passage in 2 Chronicles 20 many times and had come to the conclusion that this was a nice thought--- that the battle belongs to the Lord. In her mind she pictured handing her troubles over to God and letting Him handle them. To me this is also a nice picture-- but one that I never wanted to volunteer to live.

For years I have always greatly admired those who seemed especially 'connected' with God, but had no idea how to really get there. Surrender of control wasn't something I wanted to pursue. I liked the security of knowing how we were getting from A to Z without having to "wait upon the Lord." Still, deep with-in me the still small voice called unto me saying "Be still and know that I am God." The intimate longing within my heart was stirred, and I sought to connect to His heart. Fortunately, my husband was also in the process of truly falling in love with Jesus, and his growth challenged my own. Jesus was calling me, calling us, to discover what it meant to know Him personally.

In the book, Katy later studies that same passage of scripture again and discovers a wonderful truth. "Jehoshaphat and God's people were in big trouble, facing the most terrifying battle of their lives. In many ways, it seemed that they should give up, turn themselves over to the enemy, and pray for fewer casualties that way. But God told them otherwise." Katy finds great hope in verse 15-- "Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God's."

In this journey of life that seems so full of chaos, I am choosing to trust. This adoption road is TOUGH and having a husband in gradschool full-time while working while I homeschool and minister to my family is often exhausting. But there is no place I would rather be. As I learn to walk more intimately with Him, my heart is blessed and encouraged. I choose once again to trust the battle to Him, to His understanding, and His will. I choose to trust that He will protect our boys hearts, and the hearts of our children at home who sometimes ask "is it worth it?" So now we pray for VICTORY!

Old Man Winter Forgot to Check the Calendar!

YES IT IS MARCH! And we just got hit with more snow that we have had in years! Just the other day the kids were complaining that we didn't even get to go sledding this year! Well this weekend gave us ample opportunity! Really it was a beautiful snowfall complete with 10-12 inches of snow! And today was the perfect sledding day!

Look who turned 7!

The day we left for Haiti this precious little girl turned 7 years old! She had such a happy heart about us not being here for her Birthday. We celebrated early, left surprises for her, and knew that gma would spoil her royally! There is something about gma's being like that.

To her delight, she didn't have any school to do on her birthday and instead went to Chuck E. Cheese for lunch, saw the "Alvin and the Chipmunks" movie at the dollar theater, and got to pick out Webkin clothes for her favorite webkin! And of course there was another birthday cake and ice cream! Thank you gma for making her day extra special!

Lessons Learned

OK-- the chaos really didn't end until we set foot on our plane to visit the boys! My mom, who was arriving the day before we were to leave for Haiti, was on a flight that was canceled and then bumped to a flight that was greatly delayed, and ended up arriving almost 9 hours later than originally scheduled. Bless my mom!

Leaving was difficult as all of our kids were crying as we prayed together and said our goodbyes. Of course, once we were out the door everyone was fine!

We spent so much time covering our trip in prayer, but not the time before our trip in preparation nor the time we after we got back. And it was and has been kind of hard. Lesson learned-- pray earnestly for ALL the surrounding circumstances! Rob has been sick since we came back, one of the kids is pretty sick again and I feel like we are once again banging our heads against the wall. In spite of it all, we were so blessed to love on our precious boys and serve at the orphanage.

I don't know why God called us, but we are blessed to see Him work and to have our lives enriched by these precious boys. This road is already long -- it has been over one year since we started this process-- and we do grow weary, but God has certainly woven these boys into the depths of our hearts -- and we are blessed.