A big step done!

We just found out that our I800A is approved for our adoption! This is about 3 1/2 weeks sooner than the 90 day estimate we were given. :)

So thankful for another step crossed off!

Five

Lucy turned 5 today! Hard to believe....

Here she is last night going to bed on her special birthday pillowcase as a 4 year old:

Having lunch on the birthday plate:


New pillowcase from Nan & Pops:

New boots from Grandma & Grandpa:

Someone else likes the new boots:

Five!!!:


She spent the special day at school, the doctor's (***see below), & dinner at restaurant of her choice. She chose "Old McDonald's" but in order for Mark to meet us at a decent time we had to pick one farther from our house. It ended up being one that was split with a gas station in not the nicest area without a playground! Some birthday dinner! But it didn't bother her one bit! :)

Thanks to everyone who made her day special! Kalee - she LOVED hearing y'all sing on the answering maching and Gretch - she is sleeping with her horsie tonight (named him 'Rainbow Scout')

***We went back to the plastic surgeon today for a check up on her stitches. He cut the rest of them out and said it should start healing now. She still wants the bandaid on and I don't blame her!

Wake Up Call

Yesterday the sermon we were blessed to hear was about the benefits of knowing God. Truly knowing who He is and being blessed by His attributes and character as opposed to knowing Him in a way that fits our thinking and logic and missing out on the blessings of His true nature! It really spoke to my heart and one thing that resonated with me was God's immutability, or the fact that He never changes. It was specifically said that our lives could change at 3 o'clock that afternoon and what peace & hope there is in the fact that God is there, never changing, always knowing.

Well, for us it wasn't 3 o'clock, it was closer to 8. Lucy fell off the couch onto the corner of the coffee table. Even now, my heart is still beating faster than it should. There was blood everwhere, all over Mark, all over me, all over the bathroom hand towel I grabbed on the way out the door. Mark sped us to the ER while I held Lucy in the backseat. I was doing okay as long as I didn't look at her head (it was the deepest, widest hole right between her eyes) but when she started fading like she was going to fall asleep, I (in my ignorant medical knowledge) began to panic thinking sleep was bad after a head wound - which in some cases it is but not in this one. So I was literally shouting at her to keep her eyes open and to talk to me as Mark is running red lights here and there and 10 minutes to get to the hospital is starting to feel like 10 hours.

2 hours later and after a plastic surgeon masterfully sewed her up, we were on our way home. My beautiful girl is still beautiful but will have a new feature to her delicate face. I know it will fade in time and one day she can wear Arbonne makeup :), but I just hate the thoughts of "what if" and I "should have done this". Of course, I am so grateful that in the end it turned out to be a cosmetic issue, not a life threatening one but in the emotions of the moment, my sinful mind wandered and went down paths no parent likes to ever think about.

In the end, I am thankful for the reminders God taught me in church that morning. That He is faithful, He is here, He never changes. I can not imagine going through something like that or something worse without Him.

P.S. I'll spare you the pictures for now. Maybe someday I can post before and after pictures when the scar has faded. :)

Fun pictures

Nate helping Grandpa after we ripped out carpet:




Lucy and her friend jumping in a big leaf pile:

Trying to help

If anyone out there is looking to raise money for a worthy cause, I would love to help support you through my business with Arbonne. And I truly mean that out of a way to bless others - I do not get any profit from such an event; in fact, I would be simply donating my profits to you.

My family has been blessed so far by our affiliation with Arbonne and I feel moved to bless others - that is the bottom line!

I am not trying to solicit, deceive, weasle anyone. So if you're interested in raising some bucks for your team, your family, your church, etc. please let me know and I would be delighted to serve you.

Change is coming...

As a Christian, I know that God is sovereign, that He is in control, that as my friend Heather put so eloquently, "the future is history for God." But God does not promise an easy road without suffering. We still live in a fallen, evil world so my concern now comes in full force.

I believe the country has spoken through the election and that change is coming. I don't mean change in the economy, or the wars, or the energy sources. I mean change in the sense of what is right and what is wrong, of who gets a voice and who doesn't. When you open the door for sin to enter, it doesn't politely or timidly allow itself in. No, it explodes through with full force. What we barely tolerate today in our culture will be the norm in a few years. Things we couldn't fathom tolerating will become issues of major controversy in the near future.

As a parent, I am disappointed for my children and the fact that the road ahead will be so much harder for them than it was for me. I am spurred on to make sure they are prepared with the truth of the gospel so that they will be able to handle being different from the changing American culture.

Here is an excerpt from a thoughtful article on the current situation, highlighting where my heart is & was during this election:

Yet, the issues and the politics remain. Given the scale of the Democratic victory, the political landscape will be completely reshaped. The fight for the dignity and sanctity of unborn human beings has been set back by a great loss, and by the election of a President who has announced his intention to sign the Freedom of Choice Act into law. The struggle to protect marriage against its destruction by redefinition is now complicated by the election of a President who has declared his aim to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act. On issue after issue, we face a longer, harder, and more protracted struggle than ever before.

Still, we must press on as advocates for the unborn, for the elderly, for the infirm, and for the vulnerable. We must redouble our efforts to defend marriage and the integrity of the family. We must be vigilant to protect religious liberty and the freedom of the pulpit. We face awesome battles ahead.

You can read the whole article on Albert Mohler's blog.

Halloween Fun

Here are some pictures from our week of Halloween fun! Lucy was a Texas Aggie cheerleader and Nate was an alligator! We had a fun time trick or treating with friends first at the mall and then in our neighborhood. We have LOTS of candy now!