Christmas Time!

What a fun and crazy time of year! Mia has been learning that its time for Jesus birthday and not hers. She hasn't quite got it, but she will. I know that in the morning she is going to be on cloud 9 with all her presents! Tonight is the Christmas eve service at church and she is supposed to sing with the 3 yr. old class. We will see what happens. We have just been so busy. I have been ind the process of getting London's room ready and redoing the office to be more of a productive work area. In between that, we have MOPS and Mia has preschool -which she loves so much! We have been so blessed this year. Its been kinda tight, but God has never failed us and He always takes care of us! Praise Him for all that He does for us.

Going to Africa has really changed the way I look at the holidays. I don't love the extravagance like I used too. I still translate things into shillings and birr. I think of my friends in Africa all the time. I pray that those moments we have to see a different way of life change me so that my life we be more of a reflection of Jesus Christ! Merry Christmas and may you be blessed-A

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving to each of you! Today was a delightful day. We got to be with our family and had more food than I have seen for a long time. Actually had trouble fitting it all on a very large table. I have to say it made me a little ill to look at it. So much food!! Did any of the people there realize how blessed we were? All I could think of was the beans, rice and a small egg that 400 children got one day in Uganda. I thought of each of those kids we met at the dump in Ethiopia and the hunger that gnaws at them each day. I prayed that London and Olivia had enough to eat today in their orphanage. I didnt take pictures because I knew I wouldnt post them because I didnt want to flaunt my over abundance before my hungry friends in other countries. I felt sad knowing so many in Haiti eat dirt to stay alive.

I thank God for my blessings-dont think I am not thankful. But this was the first thanksgiving in my life that I hurt because I knew how abundantly blessed we were and how much I take for granted in my american life. I pray that I will remember this day and continue to share my blessings from God with others in lesser situations. Praying each of you were blessed to be having family time on this wonderful holiday! May you be blessed-A

Two years!!

Well this is the youngest pic I can find on the lap top! I cant believe its been two years since we flew into Guatemala and raced into our hotel to find Mia waiting. It seems so long ago and yet its only been two years. I remember how excited I was and so scared too. I didn't know this little girl. She did not remember me at all. I had all the "what if's" of motherhood running through my brain and I was so far away from my mom!

Mia is one of Gods amazing blessings in our lives. She fills our home with joy and laughter! She is most definitely Guatemalan. I thought she would loss that and yet she loves bright colors like her culture loves. She loves the Mexican food-yet not really the spicy stuff. She is just precious! We are so blessed to be called her parents and she amazes us every day! Thank you Jesus for our little Guatemalan blessing!

May you be blessed-A

Passage of Time!

Well its no secret that I have not blogged for a while:) Life has been so crazy since I returned from Africa. We started harvest early this year. This was nice because we are now done about a month earlier than last year. But it also makes for crazy busy days. During this time we accepted two babies in Ethiopia and pulled off two fundraisers. Mia turned 3 during the craziness and we will have to have a really awesome birthday for her next year since this year was pretty boring. We are hoping to get a court date soon and praying that if its Gods will we can get those babies by Christmas!

Mia is getting so big! She is just such a blessing from the Lord! She is so sweet and I just really enjoy being a mom most days. She is in preschool one day a week and she loves it. She loves animals of all kinds and loves her kittys. We had to get a new home for Olive since she was needing a lot more attention than I had to give her. Mia has not missed her a bit, so that was better than I was expecting. We are so glad she was adopted into a really nice home where we know she will be loved. I was so sad to see her go though. I think I was the only one:)

Well I dont have a whole lot to say except we are so blessed and life is going good and oh so busy!

May you be blessed-A

Ethiopia-2nd leg of mission trip

To me this picture says Ethiopia like no other pic I have! I also love it because one of the sweet men at our guest house did an oil just like it and I bought it from him. It will be going in baby boys room:) Ethiopia was the second leg of our trip and it was quite amazing. It was beautiful. There are eucalyptus trees there and they smell awesome. That smell will always be Ethiopia to me from now on. When we got to ET we were tired, hungry and dirty. We got to the guest home and it was like going from camping to the Hilton in my mind! We could shower with warm water and sleep on a 4 inch mattress rather than 2 inches. Now the only part of this that I didnt enjoy was the endless prayer calling. Between the Muslim and the protestant-we never lacked for mournful noise. The people of ET are just beautiful. I love these people and love that they are free to show love to each other and not pervert it like we do in America. They are generous and will do anything for you. Our itinerary didnt go as planned, but that is okay. We were in the places that God wanted us to be. We spent some time a AWAA doing a mural for the orphanage. The first time we were there, I held a little girl about the whole time. She was so tiny. I thought she was probably 3 wks old. She was 3 months old. She didnt like to be swaddled like a little baby normally would. She just wasnt used to the human contact and the comforting snuggles of a mommy. It broke my heart. She cried a lot and would stop when I sang to her. I think of her every day. I prayed over her before I left and pray that she has been blessed with a loving family by now. As I think of my own two children sitting over there it just makes my heart ache for them and what they may or may not be feeling.
We spent a lot of time driving in Ethiopia. We would start out-the drivers would say "yes, yes" and act like they knew where we were to go are what was going on and then we would get to do something different:) Lots of crazy miscommunication! But one day we got to go to the dump. I believe there is around 80,000 or more that live and make a living at the dump. This area started as a leper colony. Than generations got lost in the poverty and rejection of growing up a dump child. The people here are amazing!! I know I use that word a lot but its just what fits. The love that they have for each other is such a testimony. They are going to be the Hebrews 11 people of Ethiopia! We spent the day there and it was a hard day for me. The altitude is killer and I was really suffering from low blood sugar that day. I got to walk through the dump with part of my group. Words cannot describe what our eyes saw. My heart felt as though it would burst wide open with emotion I have yet to put into words. Mountains of trash-puddles of dark yellow and black water-and more trash. Broken glass every where-I was begging God to not let me fall down. You are looking at the mountains of trash and than you start to see bodies moving on it. Its the people who are digging through all of it to find something that they can turn around and sell to make a small amount to keep on living. More flies than the old testament plague. You had to breath through your nose or you would eat flies. Maybe I should have for the protein! The children are so dirty and the women or too! Yet they hugged us and smiled like it was another day. I felt like I was in a nightmare. How do these people live here? How come they have to do this. What will happen to the tiny baby on the mothers back? This day changed my life. It opened my eyes to something I didnt know existed! When we got the referral for two babies, I asked Brett "how can we say no?". I couldnt-not after what we saw. We got to bless the children at the dump ministry with lunch of lamb and than we got out the soccer balls! We walked to a beautiful eucalyptus grove down by the river to play some soccer. So awesome! A day I will never forget. You can sponsor these children to go to school and get a education. To someday break the chains of the generations of dump living and hopelessness. If you would like more info on this ministry please leave your email and I will get you the info. This ministry just sent 250 children to boarding school. 250 children who will for the first time in their lives have 3 meals a day, a bathroom, more than one change of clothes, their own blanket, a bed and I could go on and on. I cant wait to take Brett. For him to walk the dump and see the poverty with his own eyes and see what I saw!
At the end...I was so ready to go home! It had been a long time away from my family and I was ready for some food! When I got to D.C.-I was so happy to be in the USA!! So thankful that I live here. I was so hungry though and I stunk so bad:) I found a little pizza joint at my gate, bought a huge slice and a yummy Caesar salad. I sat down and Blessed the food like no other time in my life. Than I proceeded to eat faster than ever with tears rolling down my face. I am sure the people around probably thought I was a little mental! Africa was awesome! Lord willing-I will go back to serve the people again. In the future we will go back-there are two little souls there that are waiting for mommy and daddy to come and get them!!! Thanks for your prayers and support for the most life changing summer ever!!
May you be blessed-A

More of Africa

I'll start by saying that jet lag is for real! The first week I was home I was sick and really jet lagged. So now that I have finally returned to Indiana time, I have a lot of catch-up. I wanted to tell you about each day but that is going to take way to long. I loved Uganda! The whole team did. The children in Uganda were so vivaceous and amazing at all they did. They would sing and dance for us each place they went. These little souls would praise God with all of their hearts and just put our little american faith to shame. I was so amazed at their spirit of faith in the midst of poverty and tragic circumstances of the lifestyle of an African. They have the real thing when it comes to true faith in God!! We had the priviledge of living at Canaan Childrens Home for 5 days. That was so fun. Momma Rebecca fixed the best food and Pastor Isaac was a man of God, so full of His joy. These people had needs and never once did I hear them ask for anything. All that came from the mouths of the people of Canaan was praise the thankfulness to God for all that He had done for them! What a testimony. We did not get to hear Pastor Isaac preach- but I imagine that its powerful and life changing. This man was shot and left for dead and God restored him and is using his life to change the hearts and souls of the fatherless! You can sponsor a child at Canaan. If you want to know more, just leave me your email and I will get you the info.

One thing I now think-if you are going to go on a mission trip-dont make it to short. It takes a while to get over your self and be thankful for the stuff you do have. I want to go back-Lord willing- and I would love to take Mia with me. She would have just loved all those kids and the singing and dancing!

In Uganda we went to 5 different ministries. We played with over 700 kids in 6 days. It was a little tiring. Each morning at the crack of dawn, the rooster would begin his mission of waking every thing. Than the muslim call to prayer would begin. And just when you thought that you would get to go back to sleep-the kids would be out and ready for the day to begin. Their school day began at 6 am. The kids are super smart. I was amazed at the artistic talent that so many of them had. At one ministry I spent hours coloring with the children. They liked the bright colors the best! They loved the silly bands, silly string, and the many balloon hats that were made and passed out. One thing that was hard for me- was that we were asked not to give things out to the children. The ministry leaders ask this of us so that the children will learn to respect authority and not beg. I think that is awesome that they do this. Its so fun to give and see little eyes light up with joy, but so neat that they are being taught such good principles. One of my favorite things about Uganda was the day we got to go out on the Nile River!! Such a cool experience to get to see this river and be on it. To know that the very waters that Moses floated in as a baby-I got to float in them too. It was beautiful and a little scary. The boats took on a little water and I am not hugely fond of swimming in large bodys of water. I am so glad that I got to experience all of this with my mom. I felt like we didnt spend just huge amounts of time just talking, but we got to do this together and that will always be a memory that I will never forget.

I also think its just amazing that for 20 some years I have wanted to go to Africa and now I have been! God did amazing miracles too. I never once became sick! I never once got homesick! He kept us safe and sound! My body never once fell apart! And the most amazing thing....it just clicked. You know how you go through life wondering " what is Gods purpose for me? Whats that one thing that God has called ME to do?" I think I know:) I just felt a peace in my soul. God called me to something that was huge and way out of my comfort zone. Sure I wanted to do it, but so many things have forever held me back. I then I said "yes"! I went forward in faith and God supplied the money, the good health, Mia did awesome while I was gone, and so much more. I can tell you that if time last, I will return to Africa!

The Pearl of Africa

Thank you Jesus for being us safety to Uganda! Its a long way to get here. Well I will start with day #1. I enjoyed my last hot shower and we headed off to church for the early service. We got to the airport 2.5 hours ahead of departure and that was a good thing. First round of craziness began at the ticket counter when the lady helping me asked for my paper tickets. I told her that they were e-tickets and she said she couldnt find them. That began the frantic phone calls to the agency who works with VO. Things were changing by the minute and Mia was starting to be naughty because she was so hungry. So Brett and Mia went to get lunch and I waited to find out what was going on. Well long story short-Ethiopian airlines forgot to push the tickets through and that was the cause of a lot of hassels! So my image of having a nice lunch and spending a little more time with my family fell flat. By this time my plane was going to start boarding soon. I started to cry. The gal had been so nice and was doing such a good job of figuring out my mess, but I just wanted to spend a little more time with the family. So she saw my tears and gave Brett and Mia security passes to go with me to my gate. So sweet of her! So we got to the gate and hung out for a little. By this time it was past nap time for Mia and she was in full naughtiness mode. So we said our goodbyes and they were gone. Then we began boarding. The lady scans my ticket and it flashes "already seated". I am like "I dont think so". So thus began the next round of craziness. Well the man in my seat was so kind and gave it up since he had already missed his connection in Dulles. During this time it began to storm and they grounded all planes due to lightening! Then they said I may not make it so once agian I am calling Mike to find out what to due with my flights! Lots of confusion and craziness later-we were finally all boarded and ready to depart of Dulles. This flight was originally to take 1 hour 49 min. We made it in just under 1 hour:) Got to Dulles and hit the ground running! Ran right into Kari, Randi and Dee Dee. They had been praying for me to make it. So we got all the luggage forwarded onto Entebbe and went to find mom. She was going to have to collect luggage and rebook for Entebbe. So Ernie went with us and we got that all finished in time to board the plane for the next 16 hours! Now Ethiopian air is really good at feeding you like every 2 hours! And I really think they absolutely love waking you up! They shake you awake-plop some food down and smile! We had a fuel stop in Rome and then we were on to Addis. We got there and grabbed some water. Soon we were boarded and headed for Entebbe. We got to Entebbe I think about 2am. We soon realized that most of us were missing our luggage. So we spent more time trying to cross the language barrier and get some understanding about our luggage! Soon we were off to Sophies hotel for to rest for a few hours.

That was a little shocking! We walk into this place and soon realized that the reviews we had all read online were so true:) Lizards on the walls and 3 inch cockroaches in the halls! We are in Africa! They did serve a good breakfast though. Each morning was funny. The rooster would crow, then the dogs would bark and on it went, back and forth! We would soon learn that this is normal. Well that is all for now. Gotta run. I will continue to update each day as I have time:)

May you be blessed-A

Africa-Here we come!

Well the time has come to fulfill my life long wish to go to Africa! I will get to ride a boat on the Nile, maybe learn a few new dance moves and I have heard that the Africans really know how to worship! Our dates of the trip are July 18th - August 1st. Please keep us in your prayers and I will hopefully beable to update the blog on the trip. We will see how all of this goes:)

We leave out of Dulles as a team at 8:30 pm Sunday night and we arrive in Entebbe, Uganda at 3:30 am on Monday morning. Our schedule is to go to Return Ministries Uganda, My Fathers House orphanage, Canaan's Children Home, Nile boat ride, Amazima Ministry and their feeding program for the Karamajong children. That is all in Uganda and I have a lot of fun stuff to give out thanks to so many who donated. Then we will be on to Ethiopia. Hope to update on our time there when we get to Ethiopia.

Well I cannot thank you enough for interceding before the Father on our behalf!

May you be blessed-A

Count down!

These days have just been zooming by us! We have been having lots of summer time fun though. Mia and I have been doing some swimming. This little gal is a fish! You put her arm floaties on and she will swim for the next 3 hours! She loves to doggie paddle -mostly because its called a "doggie" paddle:) We have been talking lots about Africa and all the fun things she will get to do while I am gone. I got a grab bag that is filled with fun things for each day that I am gone. We had to go do some clothes shopping due to the fact I wrecked a load of laundry:) I love Old Navy. I found some great deals which is awesome. Most of the things we got should also carry over into fall and winter. Its sad to see all the back to school stuff out in stores already:/ I am a forever summer sort of person.
Well I will try to get my itinerary posted this next week and hopefully post at least once while I am gone. We shall see. My bags are packed and I am mostly ready to. Hope you are all having a great summer too. May you be blessed-A

lazy summer days!

Summer is crusing by so fast! I have been trying to make the most of each moment and nice day that we have been blessed with. Mia is such fun these days. She just puts more and more together. She loves to roll in the grass with the kitties and they tolerate her affection. We have had a ton of rain lately and some major storms and she just sleeps through them! I am so glad that she can. She loves to eat watermelon and just discovered orange push-up's:) She loves them so! We are so excited to be going to Chicago next Tuesday. We are going to go up and spend the day with a sweet friend of mine and go to the Shedd aquarium. Mia is going to love it! I cant wait for her to experience it.

Well just 23 days till I head off to Africa. Very excited and a having a little bit of a hard time thinking of leaving my hubby and little gal for that long. I can get a few tears if I think very long on it:/ But so excited to see what God has in store for the team and all that we will get to do and all the people we will get to bless with our donations! That will be awesome!!!

Well the little gal has been sleeping now for 3.5 hours and I think I am going to go wake her up or it will be a long time till she wants to go to sleep:)

May you be blessed-A

Africa..in 4 weeks!!!

Hey friends! I just wanted to put a shout out to anyone who would has a heart for the orphan and would like to donate towards my mission trip. I would like to fill a 50lb duffle with childrens medications! This is a big need and not as fun to buy as crayons and toys. If you would like to donate, please let me know and I will get our address to you or can pick up if you are local!
I would like all donations in by June 28th!
May you be blessed-A

Summer, Summer!

Its that the time of year where we get to have two baths a day! Mia loves to get into the pool as soon as breakfast is over and play outside all day. She is loving her kitties! They are really sweet kittens and Olive loves to drive them crazy:) We have been blessed with lots of strawberries in the garden patch. I have picked 2.5 gallons so far and there is more to come.

On the adoption front: just lots of prayer for that referral!! We also recieved a call from Lifesong for Orphans that they would be letting us know in 2 weeks about our grant application. Please join us in prayer for that decision. We could really use this grant:)

Getting excited about going to Africa!!! I purchased a book about Dr. Catherine Hamlin who founded the Fistula hospital with her husband in 1959. She is still performing surgery at the age of 83. I hope to meet this amazing women, whose love for the Lord has lead her to give her life to the women of Ethiopia. The books name is "Catherine's Gift". I can hardly put it down. I cant wait to experience this in person.

Only 43 days till we leave. Makes my stomach jump around a little! Last week I had 4 shots and that was not fun. The actual shot was a breeze but the after effects were painful. Every one reacts differently to these things.

Hope your weekend is blessed and finds you in worship to our Mighty God!

May you be blessed-A

Introducing......

We have some new little kitties at our house! There names are Finn and Piper. They are lots of good intertainment for Mia and Piper is nice enough to tolerate her love/squashing hugs:) These kitties are really fun and Olive tries her best to eat them. I think she is just mothering them, but they are so little it doesnt work so well!
On to our life....trying very hard to squeeze every extra penny out of whatever piece of my budget that I can. So I made my own laundry soap (totally forgetting about my allergic reactions to some soaps) and I am now beginning the rewashing of all my clothes, sheets and towels! I am covered with a very itching, sometimes sore rash!!! So much for being frugal:/
I have had some more generous donations to my mission trip and now only have $938.00 dollars left to raise!! God is amazing! If you would like to donate to the orphanages that we are going to, leave a comment and your email and I will let you know what I need. Well I think that is about all that is happening. Nothing major and that is wonderful. Loving the warm weather we are now finally having. Mia spent several hours in her pool this afternoon and then onto the sand box and finally to the tub! She loves water and her bathtime can last up to 2 hours:) She has also tried to introduce the kitties to swimming, but the declined in a rather abrupt manor!
May you be blessed-A

Almost there!

Yesterday was a adventure for me! I had the opportunity to go to a friends church and speak about my upcoming trip to Africa. Then they blessed me with a donation towards my trip. I was very humbled. I wish I could tell you what I said, but I dont remember:) I was a little nervous. It was fun to see who all went to the church. I work out at Curves and have met a lot of people, but I dont know a whole lot about them. I recognized a few people. So I only have $1221.00 to go to completely fund my trip. I cant believe how God has blessed me and it just trickles in slowly but its coming together.

Last night we met as a family at Grandpa B's to annoint him. His cancer has returned and he starts treatment today. Please pray for him and for healing if that is Gods will. Pray for Grandma also as she walks beside him in this. She has done this a few times since 2008 and I can only imagine what she is feeling.

No news on the adoption front:) Hopefully soon. I have to get all my shots for my trip so that may start this week. Yippee!

Praying your week is filled with a close walk with Jesus and that you make time for the things that matter-like Grandparents who may not be around forever.

May you be blessed-A

Much about Mia

This is Bella the bunny. She is Mia's sleeping buddy and she is loved lots. Mia had Bella all tucked in just like mommy tucks her in:) Mia moved to a big bed last week. Last week we had night time melt down. Mia loves people and she doesnt like to be alone. But we havent had issues at night time really since the first few nights we put her in her crib when she came home. Well last week she made up for lost time! When she climbed out of her crib and crashed to the floor-giving me momentary heart failure-we decided it was time to switch. Poor little gal had bruises down one side of her and a rug burn on her face. It was awful! She is doing pretty good-has fell out a few times though:) She thinks she is pretty big. She has also decided to start waking up at 6:15 am no matter what time she goes to bed:/

So last week a ran 1 mile. I was emotionally and physically spent. Not only did we have the sleeping issues we have been experiencing strong willed toddler behavior! So with lots of prayer we meet each day and pray that Mia's heart with be changed and desire to obey and see how much we love her and that we want only the best for her. She is so precious and she has such a big heart. She loves to give you kisses all day. She is so gentle and kind with her dollies and she is currently into Leap Frog! We got a "Get ready for preschool" dvd. We hope to send her to a local preschool this fall. Its one day a week and it will be good for her to interact with others and keep her little mind busy.

On the Adoption Front-I have no news:)! We are hoping the papers are in Africa getting processed and that we will soon be referral ready! Cant wait.

On the Mission Trip Front-I have been blessed with enough money to pay for the plane ticket! This us great! You can pray for me on Sunday. I have the opportunity to speak at a local church and hopefully raise some more funding for the trip! If you want to give also, you can go to www.visitingorphans.org and click on the donation button.

Well I think thats about all for now. Its not very exciting here right now, just lots of rain. Pray for those in Tennesee and Oklahoma who have been hit hard. We are thankful for just rain after hearing these stories and seeing the pictures.

May you be blessed-A

Hooray its May!!

Miss Mia loves to be outside! She loves to go to the park and go down the slide. So we have been going to the park some and taking a little oreo blizzard with us to enjoy. Its fun to enjoy these times of togetherness! She totally cracks me up. We were in the grocery store and suddenly she yells "BOB"! I looked around slightly embarresed, and realized we were standing by the tomatoes! She really likes vege tales:)
Well, time for some news....I made my first full week of running! The first week I started my legs hurt so bad I only did one day. The next week every time I got on the tread mill- my hips, ankles and knees hurt so bad. So I picked up some new shoes and that has made a huge difference. So last week I went 4 1/4 miles. So we are at week 2. Hopefully it will get easier to breath:)
Next on the list...our papers are on their journey to Africa!! We wont know anything until they are officially registered with the court in Ethiopia! But its just so exciting!!!
I have really allowed myself to let go of a lot of my personal disciplines since Mia came home. So I am on a mission to fix that. Last week was to begin at least 3 days of exercise. This week is too get up earlier and spend the time I need in the Word and talking to my Father. This is going to be hard since it requires me to go to bed earlier, which is hard and my hubby is a night owl:) I didnt do that this morn-I will tell you that:) I think that is all for now. Hope you week is wonderful and you enjoy each beautiful day that God gives you.
May you be blessed-A

Crazy Love-Crazy life!

This is Olive and God sent her to us so I could learn just how badly I need more patience:) This dog is very naughty and trying. She is 7 months old and chews anything! Mia loves her though and so she will stay and we pray that she grows out of the naughty stage soon!

Well life has been a little busy. We have been planting our fields, sowing in faith. This means lots of single mom days, which make me so thankful for my sweet hubby:) I have gotten part of the garden planted. I have been doing all I can to fundraise for my mission trip! Iam doing a garages sale this weekend, speaking at a church next weekend and probably some more things. My ticket money is due May 31st. Please pray with me that God continues to provide and that I rest in knowing He will!

On the adoption front...More craziness....We will be making two trips to Ethiopia! I am not so excited to have to come up with more money, but so excited that I get to make 3 trips to Ethiopia in the near future. I did figure out how much time I will spend traveling and that didnt sound so fun! I believe we have gotten in all the papers and they are being processed. I am getting excited about a refferal! Mia is going to love having siblings! She is getting so big , so fast. I am just praying for at least one baby from Ethiopia. We will surely have more changes with this adoption. Its just part of adopting from a country that is not a Hague country.

Our missions team is reading Crazy Love by Francis Chan. Very cool book! I think its amazing that a lot of what I read yesterday (just started the book) is just what our Pastor taught on at church! We will see what God has to say.

Okay I think thats all for now! I pray that each of you is blessed and seeking the face of Jesus!

May you be blessed-A

It's a New Day!

Well I have 96 days till I leave for Africa! So I have not been eating real well lately and not exercising at all.....so today starts my "Couch potatoe to 5K" program! Its a 9 week program that I can do and will do. I want to be as healthy as I can be when I leave for Africa, and I have been asking the Lord to bless the trip, but not taking care of the body He gave me. So I had been doing some thinking and realized that I needed to do what I could and He will do the rest:)
On the adoption front...still have not gotten the dossier to Ethiopia. We keep getting request for "one more paper":) This is just a little annoying and I am trying hard not to anxious about it, trusting God and His perfect timing.
Well I pray that your week is blessed beyond measure and that you choose to seek the Lords face and to make time for the one relationship that is the most important!
May you be blessed-A

God is working even when we dont see it!

Hi all~ I just had to post real fast tonight to share a God thing that happened today. We are struggling financially just like most of you are too. On top of that add one adoption of two children, Gods call to go on a mission trip, and finding out that we will make not one ----but two trips to Ethiopia during our adoption. All of this adds up to a wee bit of stress if I barely take my eyes off God and His call for us. I sent out about 30 letters to fundraise for the mission trip. And I have gotten a few back. I was kinda ticked off and freaked out since I was planning on the help for the trip. I was just having a poor-me party and grumping at God. The mail comes and I go get it. In the mail was a very generous check to go towards my mission trip. I sat down and cried and cried. I was so upset that I had doubted the Great Big God that had called me to this. I just felt like He was saying to me "I've got your back"!
So I just wanted to gloat about my Heavenly Father and how He hears my crys and yours, even when it seems like its scary and hopeless-He's Got My Back!
May you be blessed-A

The Week we've been waiting for!

Its finally here! We have been anticipating this week since the beginning of the year! Grandpa and Grandma came in from Washington last night and Aunt Nats wedding is on Saturday! We get to wear fun dresses and new shoes and our little Guatemalan loves the froofy stuff! We had a princess party early this month and that was super fun:) She decided that clip on earrings arent very comfy after all. But she loves to clomp around in heels and she is just so sweet!

On the adoption front....paper work still being processed and one new paper that is needed to complete the dossier.:/ I just want these papers to be in ET and be ready to accept our children who are waiting for us! So once again we will be going to Indy to have something state certified. Hopefully this is it and we will be on our way!

Enjoy Spring-May you be blessed-A

Its a good day!

Hey all..Just a quick update to say that the Dossier has left the house!!!! I am so thankful to have the 3 pounds of paper work on its way. Now we wait fot the next step in this grand adventure that God has called us on!
May you be blessed-A

Thoughts from my heart

I am so happy to have a new camera! I love that it can capture the blue of winter mornings!:)
Well I have been thinking about some things. I thought maybe it would be good to get them out of my head and down so they may be a little clearer for me. We will see:)
I have been thinking a lot of my trip to Africa this summer and what all it means to me. I got chronic fatigue when I was 14. It ruled my life till about 4 years ago. It made me afraid to be the person I felt I was to be. I was so scared to do anything for fear of the life draining exhaustion. There was also the silent depression that came with it that I would try to cover with sarcastic humor. You know, Christians are supposed to be happy-that kept me questioning my walk. Then there was the fear of stepping out due to the church we went to and all the said and unsaid rules. This was all very hard to combat. I had such a desire to go and do and be for Jesus! God has sent things into my life and has healed me of the fatigue. I still have to be careful, but I can for the most part lead a very normal life.
So, going to Africa on this mission trip is stretching my faith already! I am trusting God to keep me healthy while I am gone. I am so scared-to be honest-scared to death that I will fall apart or catch something that will send me back to fatigue land. But, I said YES to God and I am going. I feel like He has told me He will keep me well and most days I have total peace about this:)
The next step is this....Next year I will be 30! I don't want to go into my 30's wenching and moaning that I am getting old! I want to be sold out for the work that God has placed in my heart and fill my home with His kids that will call me "mommy"! One thing that I feel very strongly about..is being a living example. That's another reason for my going on this trip. That's another reason why we are adopting again. I tell people that Gods word says to go and do, but I truly feel that I need to go and do if I am going to say these things, plus Gods word says too. So that's a little of whats been on my heart lately. I am so thankful to be able to go! I am also so happy that my mom will be joining me on this trip! We are going to have a awesome time together. Mom and I have done so much together and I am so thankful to have a mom that is sold out for Jesus and who has instilled these values into my life! Its so amazing! Its also this relationship that propels me to be sold out for Jesus in front of my little gal! I want her to have a burden for the lost and to desire to be the hands and feet of Jesus to others. I want to direct you to www.familylifetoday.com . There is a Cd that I gave to all my gal friends at Christmas that is just awesome. Its 3 Essentials for every married women. Its good for those of you who are not married also:) Barbara Rainey talks about being a world changer on this Cd and its my new motto! I want to encourage you to be a world changer in whatever way God has called you to. Don't let fear stop you! One thing that I like to say is this..."When my times up, I want to break the tape at full speed"! I want to RUN my race and finish well! While God continues to bless me with breath in my lungs-I am going to be sold out! I hope this inspires you to be doing what you can in your community! God is awesome-He will make a way for you to do what He has placed on your heart! May you be blessed-A

P.S. took Mia to the chiropractor and she sleeps soundly ALL night long!

Late Nights

She looks so darling when she is sleeping! We have been having a lot of conversation in the middle of the night. Around 5 hrs after she has gone to bed, she will wake up screaming my name. I fly out of bed, zoom upstairs with my heart pounding, and when I get there she becomes totally quiet and just looks at me. I will ask what is wrong, comfort her and hold her tight-all the while trying to breath normally agian. Usually she just wants to see me:) Yay. So last night around 1:30 A.M. I told her that I had enough of this just wanting to look at mommy in the middle of the night! So at 4:00 A.M. she starts screaming "unka Benny, Unka Benny"! I totally cracked up! She knew not to say my name enough to come up with "Unka Benny" who is 2300 miles away. This game has come to a end. Welcome to mommy life, where children scream in the night, where husbands dont have a clue that you've been running up and down the stairs at 1 and 4 in the morning while they stay sound asleep in the nice warm bed:) I love her! She is such a sweet heart and she just loves us so much too! May you be blessed this day-A

Africa-Here we come!

Okay...its totally official! I am going to Africa in July! I am beyond excited and Lord willing-my mom will be joining me. We will be going to love on a whole lot of children, help out some orphanages and do something that I had planned to do when we went to get the kids. We will be spending a day at the Fistula hospital just ministering to the women. Go to http://www.fistulafoundation.org/ for more info. Its just awful what some of these women live with. I think one reason this just grabs my heart is that I would be one of these women if I lived in Africa.

So in preparation for this...here are some ways you can pray.

#1. Pray that our hearts would be prepared to do Gods work.

#2. Pray for the hearts of the Africans we will be ministering to.

#3. Pray for Brett and Mia. Pray that they would be great while mom is gone:)

#4. Pray that God will provide the funds for the mission trip.

I will keep you updated on this time gets closer. We are going with Visiting Orphans. You can check out there site at http://www.visitingorphans.org/ . There are a few spots left if you want to join us also!

Well on the adoption front..GOD IS SO GOOD!!! We actually are going to get a tax credit for Mia's adoption and this will allow us to send off the dossier! I cant tell you how thankful I am for this tax credit and I pray that Obama will see how much it helps the adoptive community. But I also know that My God owns the cattle on a thousand hills and $30,000 is nothing to Him and He will continue to provide just like He always has. Thank you for all your prayers and support during this process. May you be blessed-A

waiting still

I am getting a little tired of snow, but it makes some real pretty pictures! We are going to have to be waiting a little while longer before the papers get sent away. There is now money due before its sent in and we just dont have it at the moment. So please hold us up in prayer as we seek out our options. So much of adoption is waiting on the Lord and more waiting:)!

On the home front here...we just have been laughing alot! Mia is so funny and she says and does the funniest things. She currently loves Mickey Mouse and Princess Daisy. She said yesterday "Mom, you looka so pretty! You like Princess Daisy Mom!" Melts a mommys heart:) She also likes to pray right along with Brett at meals times and this can be a wee bit distracting, but I think she mostly likes to say a very hearty AMEN at the end!

Enjoy the rest of winter if you live where there is actually winter! I mostly wish it would be over. I cant wait to pick fresh strawberries out of my patch this spring!!! Until next time...May you be blessed-A

Adventure like no other!

Someday....Iam going to share these with her future husband and its going to be so fun!

Okay now for the adventure...FIRST...if you like to drink coffee- please go to www.justlovecoffee.com/theskiles and help us raise the money to cover the travel exspeses for our adoption. This coffee is soooo good! We love it and so do all who have tried it.

SECOND..Lord willing, this next week our dossier will be sent off and on its journey to Africa!!! I cant wait to have it gone from my pile of stuff to do. Once this bundle of papers hits the road, we have about 8 wks till we are refferal waiting! I go from being totally excited to massively freaked out!

THIRD.....Lord willing....I will be heading out on a adventure that I have wanted to do since I was a little girl! I will hopefully be going to Uganda and Ethiopia the end of July! I will let you know more about this as soon as I know I have been accepted for the trip for sure! I hope, I hope!!

This week I got to go meet my friends little guy from Ethiopia. He is just precious!! Mia loved him and now she wants two boys from "Akkica". I told her to tell Jesus. So you hear her saying "Jesus, two babies from Akkica" as she is playing. Oh, children are so precious!

Well I believe that should catch me up for now. Thanks in advance for buying some yummy coffee to support us:)! We are so glad for friends and family who support us wether in prayer or other ways. I pray that you will make your way to church tomorrow and that you continue to seek the face of your Father. May you be blessed-A

Check these out!

This is just a random pic of Mia with Olive:) The dog is so sweet yet so bothersome. Puppie stage is cute but they are so bad too!

Any way...since we are in the process of adopting two more children and on the way to being a family of 5 (whoa, thats scary to write)...I have been praying and trying to find ways to live a little more frugally than we have been. Through another very helpful blog, I was lead to these other blogs. I hope that they are helpful to you and your families.

www.thenourishinggourmet.com

www.hillbillyhousewife.com - www.thegreenparent.com . I hope that your week is blessed and I pray that you make time to spend time in the word of God. May you be blessed-A

Thanks for praying

Great is His faithfulness! God has brought several options to light for us regarding our adoption! We have several options from our agency and that is wonderful. Markets are markets. They are doing a little better today:) We had a friend from our local African yahoo group give us a agecny name for grants. So all these little blessings are wonderful. So thank you for praying. I know that my God is able to do amazingly more than we think or even ask and that is awesome to rest in. Its just amazing how much He cares for us. I pray that you are blessed for taking time to pray for us. -A

Please pray

Well this is not the post I thought I would write next...We could really use your prayers.
As farmers, our life revovles around markets and government reports. They are beyond bad.
#1. Pray for God to direct us in our next steps.
We dont know where to go or what to do at this moment. We are just hanging on for dear life and knowing that God will show us and we really need to be shown.
#2. Pray that we would know how to proceed financially in our adoption.
Exciting that we recieved our I 171-H form today. #3. Pray that Brett would just keep looking to the Lord, and that God would speak mightly into his life.
#4. Pray that I would be a good steward and know how to stretch what little we have for our family at this time.
#5. Pray that we would be at peace knowing that God never leaves us or forsakes us.
Thank you for praying! I dont know what else to say except we know that God called us to adopt two children from Ethiopia and we are walking by Faith in a new way.
May you be blessed-A

crazy life

Hi! I am back! A little about me...in the winter, if I do not protect my throat and mouth from cold temps I will become sick! So I took Mia sledding and got comfortable in the fact that I had been so healthy this winter so far, and did not wear enough warm things. Two days later I wake up to sickness like never before:) So bed is were I have been. So thankful for my mother-in-law who helped take care of Mia so I could lay in bed sick-hacking up my lungs! Now life has returned to normal with a few twist....We thought last week that we were going to get a orphan from Haiti...had a full day of adoption workshop...and decided to pursue going on a mission trip this summer....and potty training started and so far has been pretty successful! Praise God for a
z-pac to help me get better! This week is sure to be crazy with all the catching up to do. I have several things to tell you about but that will have to be after the dishes, clothes and taxes are all done.
Blessings to each of you-A

The call of God

This picture was taken not long after Mia had been home. She loves to worship and she praises Jesus with her whole heart. I try to get her to "break it down" when she is singing, but she will not. She sings with her hands folded or raised and her eyes closed in devotion. I know God smiles and recieves her praise with a glad heart!

I often wonder what she would be doing now if we had ignored the call that God had placed on our hearts. I wonder if she would even know Jesus. I wonder where her life would have taken her if she had been left in Guatemala. I know how a lot of girls there make a living and its not pretty. Would she have been one of them? But as scared as we were and as unsure of how it was going to work-we went forward and God blessed us abudantly with this precious little girl.

Once agian, we find ourselves called to adopt. This time we have even less than before. God had said possibly two children! I am even more scared! I know God is faithful though and He will bring us through. It would be so easy to just get one little baby and be done. The easy little family. We would still have money to do the big vacations and designer clothes. But God has said we need to help these children that are growing up without someone to call family. We are called out by God to DO something. Even if we are scared and have to give up a lot. I am not saying any of this for sympathy. I am saying this so that any one who reads this will stand up and help. Even if you cant adopt-help someone who is. The money end of it alone is huge. Do you know someone who does foster care? Help them or maybe thats a way you can help the orphan. Get involved with Compassion or World Vision. Just do SOMETHING! Be the light in a childs life. You may be the only one who can tell them that Jesus loves them and gave his life for them. You may be the one to tell that they can accept Jesus into their heart and be saved for all eternity. Because Eternity is what this is all about. We have a mandate to tell the world about Jesus Christ and salvation through Him. Just loving a child can do this. Be the hands and feet of Jesus. Please. There are little people out there and they deserve to be loved!

Okay-I have stepped off my soapbox now:) May you be blessed-A

post Christmas

Christmas was so much fun this year! Mia was so fun. Last year she had only been with us just over a month and she didnt know what to think of it all. This year she was all about the presents and going places! She loves to go places and be with people. We are so thankful for her presence in our life.

Well on the adoption front-we finally have our new homestudy done and we get to send it in and we should soon have our I171-H form. This is the last thing we need to get our dossier ready to send in!! Yay!! I am still feeling anxious about this adoption. I am scared that I wont know how to have 3 kids and wont beable to function:/ Than I get worried that I may not have what it takes to help them bond properly. Then I think..I have not been given a spirit of fear or worry but of power and love and sound mind! Praise God that He never forgets us. He gave me amazing peace of mind when Mia came home and he did so much to keep my body going when I thought for sure I was done. If you read this-please just say a prayer that I would have the faith to remember all that my Heavenly Father has done for me and that He will ALWAYS keep me and make a way. Well I hope the new year is going well for everyone. I have lots of resolutions this year. Most have to do with doing better to stay in Gods word and making time to spend time in prayer with Him. It such a important thing for life. Gotta get the munchkin out of the bath tub. Blessings to you all-A