Nine is Fine!

Today is our anniversary! We have been married 9 years. One of my friends once said "The only thing special about your 9 year anniversary is that it's almost your 10th." It is kind of a odd number of years. So in that spirit, here are 9 Odd Facts about our relationship.

9.) We met at church on the first Sunday I visited First Baptist Loganville. We both new that day that we were meant to be together.

8.) On our first date we did dinner and a movie. We ate at "On the Boarder" and went to see "Pearl Harbor". Then we went back to my house and talked til 2 in the morning.

7.) The night we met his parents, he didn't warn me that we were going to go meet them. He just said, "Hey, you're going to  meet my parents tonight." I got to meet his Grandma that night too since she happened to be up from Fla.

6.) We had a 4 month engagement.

5.) Even though we got married in August, there was a weird weather pattern over GA and it was low 70s and drizzly for a few days before and after our wedding. (Or it would have been in the 90s)

4.) Gabe's groomsmen put a can of tuna on the engine block of our getaway car. It started to burn before we had gone a mile and smelled AWFUL. It was ages before the car smelled normal again.

3.) I thought, and still do, that Gabe has the most awesome laugh ever.

2.) We used to constantly try and scare the other one. There was lots of hiding and jumping out of closets and from behind walls. It tapered off once I became completely hormonal started having babies, but we still look for the chance to really get the other one.

1.)  People say really rude and tacky things about having kids/babies/all girls. Things like, "Wow. Got stuck with all girls, huh?" Gabe has never taken the attitude that he has been 'stuck' with his girls. I say it takes a special man to be picked by God for 'all daughter duty', and an even greater man to be adopting a fourth.

Love you, Gabe!!!!

Because Blogging is more Fun than Cleaning.........

This is is bits and pieces post, for those who like to keep up with us.........

We started school. J is in second grade and learning cursive (which she is super excited about). A is in Kindergarten and loves to do her school work. She gets mad if she doesn't get to go first. (I do school in rounds....some with one, send them for a break or to work on their own, and then the second one comes over and we work for a bit and then either back to the first or add in the third.) H is doing "How to read in 100 Easy Lessons". So far, so good. She also LOVES to be read to, so often she will grab a book and try to curl up in my lap.

Gabe has been wanting to be an outside salesman for years. He was with one company for about 15 years, and they kept passing him over, so he left there and went to work for a similar, but bigger, company. He was there about 4 mos, and found out the outside salesman was quitting, so he requested to have that job. And he got it. We are more than thrilled and he is doing really well. He also got a company truck, which means he can sell his PT Cruiser. And we can quit buying gas for it, which is awesome. We strongly believe that this promotion (that came after his/our decision to adopt K) was God's confirmation and blessing that we were headed down the right path.

The Puzzle Piece Fundraiser is going pretty slow (although a HUGE thanks to those that have given!!!!). Part of me wants to be disappointed, and part of me wants to panic, but mostly I am just waiting and praying. Meantime, I am applying for jobs that I can do in the evenings. I have applied 3 places so far. Even though Gabe did get a promotion, it's hardly going to put a dent in adoption costs. Not to mention paying to rehost K at Christmas, and then Christmas itself. I am just praying something opens up fast, so we can get to saving!

The last bit of news is that J had a pretty epic bout with swimmers ear. The lymph nodes in her face, neck and pelvis all were swollen and she could hardly move her jaw to talk or chew. I read on-line about how to cure it, since of course it was a Saturday when she puffed up, and I kept reading about white vinegar and rubbing alcohol . Using equal parts of each, mix and then put a few drops in each ear. The vinegar helps with pain and the alcohol  helps clear up infection. She took the drops like a champ and in 36 hours, was back to normal. No more swelling or pain. Now after swimming I will make sure to put rubbing alcohol drops in her ear to make sure the water is dried up and she doesn't relapse. (We are still going to the lake at least twice a week because it makes my difficult child so much easier for the next 2 days. Lord help me once it's Fall and we're not able to go. Yikes.)

Puzzle Piece Fundraiser

Puzzle Piece Fundraiser!

We are kicking off a Puzzle Piece Fundraiser! The purpose of this

fundraiser is to jump start our funds to start our home study

 (which we need to bring K home for good!).

You can read about that by clicking here.

Each puzzle piece is $5.

Click on the PayPal button at the top right hand side of the page.

When you send your contribution, please add a note telling

 me what name to put on your puzzle piece. It can be for your child,

your family, or in honor/memory of a loved one.

When the puzzle is complete, we will frame it in a two-sided frame

 so that K will be able to see the names of those that

 helped her become a part of a forever family.

Please feel free to repost!

Last day and Future Plans

So on Tues we took K to the airport to send her home. That was one of the hardest things we have had to do. Even though we plan on her returning for Christmas, it didn't help ease the pain of watching her walk away with her chaperon thru security. Or make the van seem less empty. The house is too quiet. Even our kitten paced the house meowling that night, as if she was looking for her buddy also.

The kids are each dealing with K leaving in different ways. Jadyn cried and cried. Ava became completely obnoxious, trying to be funny and making a constant stream of non sense words. Hadley kept asking where she was. Yesterday seemed very very long. K's favorite pass time was Uno, so the kids wanted to play Uno all afternoon and evening. So we did, but even that was flat.

So what do we do now? We plan and pray she comes back at Christmas. We are able to email her, and I am so grateful for that connection. There is something more though. We knew before she got her she was unavailable for becoming our daughter. One parent still has legal rights. We have still chosen to pursue her, though. We are praying and hoping that by spring, we can start the process and that she will be with us as a daughter by summer.

She is a God story if I ever saw one. I cannot wait to be able to tell her everything, so that SHE can see and know that God has brought her to us. Please pray with us and for us (and her) as we start this journey. I cannot wait til the day her laughter is in our home again.

Lining Up

This morning I am on the verge of being emotional. I cannot bear the thought of putting K on a plane on Tues. Although I will have to, and Tues is coming no matter how much I mentally drag my feet. I was on my way to shower but I feel the need to post what is on my heart this morning.

I believe God has a plan. And whether we know it or not, we are all playing a part in it. Most of the time, we don't see the effect we have on others. Generally, we don't see how an act of kindness makes someones day, or the gift card we send anonymously makes someone cry with joy and relief. Those are the short term things.

But there are long term actions too. They line up like dominoes. Craig and Kevin feel led by God to go to Latvia on a mission trip. People make donations to make it happen. They stop at an orphanage they have never been to before. There is a girl there that begs to come to America. Craig blogs about her story and Kevin posts pictures. In America, I sit and cry reading her story. Then I see her picture, and I KNOW. People donate. We host her. We fall in love. We plan on rehosting, and ultimately, bringing her home for good.

We don't know what part we play. The point is, we were willing. It seems impossible? It makes no sense? It seems too small? Silly? Too much? Not enough? Doesn't matter. If God wants you to do something- DO IT. Even if you never see the whole story play out. Even if it seems impossible, or silly, or too small or overwhelming. God uses us in spite of those excuses; He wants to use us for His glory and for His purposes.

 Who are we to ask why?

Isaiah 55:8-9

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways,”
declares the LORD.
“As the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts."