Overwhelmed

The title says it all. I am feeling extremely overwhelmed today so much so that I don't know where to begin. That is probably why I am blogging instead of working. Am I ever going to figure out how to manage a household of 8 people?

Pancakes Anyone?

This has been a challenging week. I have cleaned more messes in this one week than I have in many months put together. They have ranged from multiple poop incidents ( I mentioned the pool already. I wish it ended there.) One such incident involved poop smears on each of my carpeted stairs. Evidently, Isaiah had a leaky pullup and he proceeded to scoot down the stairs leaving a trail behind. It all culminated tonight with a major poop blowout at Cody's skating party. Isaiah said, "Saiah poop, mine" (when translated means, "I just pooped all over myself"). I didn't take him seriously. The party was almost over, and I just wanted to get home. Anyway, the skating rink doesn't have a diaper changing station. Big mistake. We went to the truck to put him in his seat and discovered poop everywhere when we took him out of the wagon. I stripped him down and used about a million wet wipes to clean him up. He rode home in a diaper. The smell in the truck was overwhelming.

Isaiah is in one of those stages. I haven't dealt with this in a long time. He is into everything and very hard to keep up with. He tries to escape and explore out in public. If he is not literally strapped to something, there is no keeping up with him. He is also into "discovering his world"(that is the nice way we say he is into everything and driving us crazy). He has covered his dresser this week with Desitin (I am so glad it was just a sample size). He has decided to begin a bubble bath for himself. He also decided it would be fun to pour a whole bottle of water on himself in the truck (who gave him a bottle of water?).

This all leads to the pancakes. You see, the new phrase I am hearing around here is, "mom, you gotta come see this." Whenever I hear that, I tighten up inside and say, "no, tell me." I don't want to just "see" without warning. As we were preparing to put the kids to bed tonight, I heard Rick say from upstairs, "Laura, come tell me what this smell is in Isaiah and Laila's room." Oh, no, here we go again. I was sure that it was some foul smell produced by one of their bodily functions. Not so. When I arrived in their room, I was greeted by a sweet aroma, much like pancake syrup. I have no idea where it was coming from. I smelled everything in that room and could not find the source of the smell. So, Rick and I decided that Isaiah and Laila must be hosting a pancake fundraiser in their room when we are not aware. When I asked Laila if she had been making pancakes, she just smiled and gave me a kiss. So, if you want to support a good cause and are hungry for pancakes, you should come over to Isaiah and Laila's pancake house for a nice little meal. Maybe we could donate the money to Swaziland.

Meet and Greet

Last Thursday, we took the kids to see their newly built school. We have been anxiously awaiting this new building for the last 1 1/2 years and it is so sweet to finally be able to return to TCA - East. The 3 older kids got to deliver their school supplies to their classrooms, meet their teachers, and see some of their classmates. It was a fun day as we anticipate the first day of school tomorrow!!! Sam begins kindergarten tomorrow and will meet his teachers and see his classroom then. Below are some pics of the kids in their classrooms.

Abby- my first grader. She gets to go to school all day and eat lunch at school this year!!!

Cody - my fifth grader in front of his locker. Poor guy has to start school on his bday.

Lauren - my third grader. Doesn't she look ready to learn in her new glasses? They are growing up fast. Before you know it, I will be posting High School graduation pictures!

Poop Everywhere

Let me just start by saying that I am being sabotoged. I don't know why, but I am convinced. Every effort I have made over the last two weeks to do fun things with the kids before school starts has been met with huge obstacles.

Today was no exception. I decided to take the kids to the pool. We invited the Fowlers to go with us because it was a "free guest" day. We were so excited to try the new indoor Splash area. We got to the pool and got everyone ready to go. I picked Laila up out of the wagon so that I could follow Isaiah around. As I am walking, I smell poop. I think, "Man, somebody really needs to change their kid's diaper." Then, I see someone from across the pool trying to get my attention. She is pointing to her shirt and then at me. I look down and I have poop all over me. All over my swimsuit, up my arms, and on my hands. I am thinking, "no way." Then I go over to the wagon and see a big pile of poop right where Laila was sitting. I have 9 children with me and a huge mess that I don't even know how to clean up or where to begin.

I grabbed the tiny container of wet wipes in my bag and began working. To clean up the mess in the wagon, I ended up with a beach towel that is covered in poo. Every time I tried to clean up some of the mess, Laila made it bigger. She was putting her hands in it. She put her foot into the open diaper before I could get it away. It was so disgusting. I got most of the visible mess cleaned up. Then, I called the other children out of the pool. I took Isaiah and Laila with me and told the 7 others to sit out of the pool and wait for me to return.

I went to the bathroom and had to completely wash mine and Laila's swimsuits in the sink with soap and water. Then we had to put soaking wet, cold swimsuits back on. No matter how many times I washed my hands, I could not get the poop smell out. Nasty.

So, we went back to the pool and resumed our time. We ended up staying for almost 3 hours and other than many episodes of craziness with Isaiah, which I have become accustomed to, the rest of our time went smoothly.

I am determined, people. I will prevail. I will accomplish the last fun days of summer before school starts!!!

"We don't eat food from the trash!"

"We don't lick people." "We don't throw our toys in the trash." "We don't pour shampoo all over the bathroom" If you have little ones, these phrases do not surprise you. I cannot believe the words that have come out of my mouth at times. Sometimes I have to just stop for a second and laugh inside as I say these things. Well, now that we are back into toddlerhood, I am once again saying those phrases daily. Isaiah is 2 1/2 yrs. old. Enough said. He is into everything and he is a boy. So, much of my day is spent cleaning up the messes that he sneaks off and makes or asking him not to do gross things. This will not end soon. I don't expect it to, but because I have left the stage and now returned I realize it WILL end. My perspective with the two new little members of our family isn't always perfect, but I do know that this is a season and I am "trying" to embrace it. It will be gone and despite my doubts, I will regret it. If you are dealing with this in your little ones lets band together and get through this. I would love to hear the phrases you have said that you never thought would come out of your mouth. I could use a good laugh today!!

African Babies

I am sitting at my computer checking emails and I just looked over at my African babies. They are both sitting and watching a Baby Einstein video. When I saw them, I was overwhelmed by God's goodness and blessing in my life. Only a year ago, they were just a glimpse of a potential calling on my life. Now they are MY children living in My family. As I watched them, Laila looked back and caught my eye. Then she blew a kiss my way. I am so blessed.

Not a flattering picture of me, but their favorite thing to do at the pool, cuddle!!

My Girls

I was a little disappointed that we didn't get big smiles out of Laila in the pictures. I think it was hard because of the bright sun and heat. She is still cute, but her personality is not captured in these pictures. I do have a funny story to share about her when we were taking the pictures. Every time we would say, "Cheese" to take a picture, she would say, "cheese" and then do the sign language sign for "eat." It was so funny. I think she kept wondering why we were talking about food, but not getting any. She is a big fan of cheese.

The Ladies of the House

All the Single Ladies

Lovely Lauren

Awesome Abby

Little Laila

My Boys

I mentioned in my previous post that getting these pictures was quite the ordeal. Just getting 8 people ready to take pictures with nice clothes, a change of clothes to play in, snacks , water bottles, and looking cute is an accomplishment. If that wasn't enough, we encountered a few more obstacles today. They include 3 injuries, one child wandering off, one child falling in the water, and an "attack" by 3 dogs (they were not on leashes and were running after my screaming kids). Not to mention how hard it is to get everyone to look at the camera at the same time with a somewhat decent expression on their faces. I think we came out pretty good considering the circumstances.

The Men in My Life (Aren't they handsome?)

Little ham

My baby has grown up

Sam the man

Mischief in those eyes

Wait until you see the girls...

Pictures of the Fam

We have been home from Africa for 4 months now. This is our first official family picture. Don't we all look so cute. (If you only knew what it took to get these pictures. It is quite the ordeal)






Stay tuned, more pictures to follow

Swazi Walk

If you know me, you know how I feel about Swaziland. God has changed me, changed our family, and changed my life through this country and through the Swazi people. We have one of our big fundraising events for Swaziland coming up soon. Here are the details:

On Saturday, August 29, Beyond Survival is hosting the 3rd Annual Swazi Walk Fundraising Event. This event provides an opportunity for the people of Vanguard to tangibly help the people of Swaziland, Africa. Last year, we were able through the generosity and commitment of Vanguard Church to raise enough money to purchase a truck for Pastor Walter. This vehicle has made the work of his ministry so much more efficient and effective. Participants will walk from Vanguard church to Children‘s HopeChest (approx. 8.5 miles). This year funds raised will go to help create new jobs and income through a Rose Geranium Farm in Swaziland, Africa. This is a new and exciting opportunity to help those with no family income. An indigenous crop to Swaziland, Rose Geranium provides a simple sustainable business for the people of Swaziland. Simpler than growing a garden, children from this agrarian culture, are able to participate in the growing of Geranium as their project for income. Every six weeks the leaves are cut and distilled for 20 minutes producing oil that will bring them life. The oil is sold in foreign exchange providing a handsome return for families as well as sustaining Care Points. Rose Geranium oil is used to produce much of the world‘s perfumes and colognes and grows best in the climate of Southern Africa. The first farm will create 4 full-time and 16 part-time jobs.
There are 3 ways to be involved. First, come by the table in the lobby of Theater 7 to get a sponsor sheet. Then commit to get sponsors and walk with us!! If you can‘t walk on that day, you can walk on another day yourself or if the walk is too far, you can walk a portion of it from one carepoint to the next. Second, we need help with this event. We could use help with publicity, setting up and manning the carepoints, and donations of water and snacks to serve at the carepoints along the route. Third, you can donate to this cause. You may believe in what we are doing and want to be a part, but cannot participate in the actual walk. Any donations received that are designated for the Swazi Walk will go towards the Rose Geranium project.

For more details on the Rose Geranium project, check out beyondsurvivalonline.org

Isaiah Sanele

I wrote about Laila last week. I wanted to take the time to write about Isaiah this week and get down all of the things that make him so special. He is a passionate little boy. Every emotion that he feels, he feels it to the fullest. That is great when he is happy, not so much when he is mad. :) I love his passion and just know that God has an amazing plan for him. We have fought a spiritual battle to bring this guy into our family. I have no doubt that Satan wants to thwart God's purposes in his life. Here are a few things that I want to remember about Isaiah as a two year old.

1. Isaiah is extremely verbal. When we took custody of him, he knew about 5 English words, but he talked non stop in his language. I knew he would pick up English quickly but had no idea that in less than 3 months he would be completely fluent. He speaks better than many 2 year olds who have lived here their whole lives. The one downside is that he talks nonstop. Some days he exhausts me with his nonstop chatter. I have told the kids we should count how many times he says, "Mama" in one day. It has to be well over 100!!

2. Favorite things - Isaiah absolutely loves pizza and bananas. For a while after we brought him home, he would ask for those two things at every meal. He also loves Baby Einstein videos. I think that watching these videos have been a huge factor in him learning English so quickly. He is an extrovert so he loves going places, especially church. Every time he goes to his class at church, he comes home so happy and energized. He also likes music. He wants to listen to music every minute that we are in the truck. He sings along with the songs. He is a good singer and dancer. I can't wait to take him back to Africa and have him hear the people singing at church. It is one of the most beautiful sounds on the earth.

3. Funny things he says and does - When he is finished doing any task, he will wipe his hands together like he is wiping them off. He did this from the day we met him. He loves to work. The best way to keep him happy and out of trouble is to give him a job to do. He says some really cute things. His latest are "goodness," "you want a piece of me?," "you want a piece of the title?(both of these things most often to Rick)," "mommy, I hold you," "whoa, cool!," and the latest when he is told not to do something, "ok, Mom."

4. Some of the habits we have had to overcome - Whenever he is finished eating, he just throws everything on the floor, food, bowls, cups, plates, silverware, you name it. We are working on this one. It is getting better. He is also learning to share. I suspect that in the environment he was in, it was every man for himself. He is learning that he doesn't have to protect his food and things anymore. When he first came home, he did a lot of hitting, biting, and pinching. He has really improved in this area and we are all thankful for that. His behavior has changed so much over the last 5 months. He is still a strong willed 2 year old, but he has grown so much in the area of behavior. (It is so funny, because after typing this, he has been really out of control this afternoon. That is just the way it goes.)

5. Isaiah is a little prayer warrior. I have no idea if he was ever taught to pray before he joined our family, but he absolutely knows how to pray now. He wants to pray at his meals and before bed when we take turns. He has gone from only repeating what we tell him to say to now saying his prayers like this, "Jesus, amen for our food, amen for our family, etc." It is adorable. It is also very important to him that everyone is participating in prayer time. He looks around and calls anyone out who doesn't have their hands folded and eyes closed. I had one really hard discipline day with him. After a 2 hour battle over nap time, I finally decided to pray over him. While I did out loud, he closed his eyes, folded his hands and said, "Yes, Jesus!" It was all I could do not to laugh at that point.

6. Isaiah loves his little sister, Laila. He shares with her, protects her, comforts her, loves on her. He is very aware of her and wants the best for her. He is actually that way with all his brothers and sisters. If he gets something, he wants to make sure that everyone else does, too. When Rick is leaving for work, he makes sure everyone gets a hug and kiss, not just himself. If he gets a snack, he asks for a snack for all the kids.

7. He is extremely loving and affectionate. He puckers up those cute little lips and it is adorable. He says, "I love you" a lot. He loves to give hugs regularly.

8. Isaiah is animated. If you have been around him for even a couple of minutes you will grasp this. He has a million dollar smile that will melt any heart and he knows how to use it. It is always obvious when he is around. He has the cutest little face where he points his finger and rolls his eyes. It makes everyone who sees it laugh.

There are a million more things I could write about my son. The biggest one of all is that he is a gift from God and I am thankful for him. My life is forever changed by this little guy whose name means, "My God is Salvation, we have enough, we are satisfied."

Code Man

Cody will be 11 in a couple of weeks. A lot has happened in the last 11 years. He has faced many challenges like sensory issues, Celiac Disease, and a month in Africa adopting his brother and sister. God has used each one to develop and mature his character into the man he wants him to be. Cody is a leader. I pray he always uses his leadership to lead others in a godly way. He is a passionate guy!! He likes soccer, football, and basketball and will be entering the 5th grade this year. Cody, you will always be my little man. I'll love you the best that a mama can!

Je Je

I love to hear my kids pray. Cody, Lauren, and Abby have sincere prayers that are deepening as they grow older. Sam has always been a prayer warrior. We have one family friend that he has been praying for regularly for years now. I especially love hearing them pray for Swaziland, our friends there, and the churches that we are working with.

I don't know what exposure Isaiah and Laila have had to prayer or even God before they joined our family. I love to see them already impacted by God in their lives. We have quite the story to tell them of how God brought them to our family. Isaiah is our prayer policemen. He makes sure that everyone is putting their hands together and closing their eyes during prayer time. If they are not, he is quick to remind them that it is time to pray. He enjoys praying and will repeat as Rick leads him to pray. Laila has begun "praying" too. At meals and before bed when she hears us say it is time to pray, she will put her hands together. Tonight, she put her hands together and said, "Je Je". She was praying to Jesus. It was so sweet and special, a moment I will never forget. I pray that both Isaiah and Laila will come to know the Lord and be encouraged by His hand in their lives from before they even knew about Him.

Wouldn't you know

School starts 2 weeks from today. It is my goal to try to do something fun with the kids every day until school starts, fun mom that I am. I was really proud of myself for following through. Most days, after the little kids' naps, I am totally wiped and hitting my low for the day. Today, I gathered the kids and said, "Hey guys, you want to go the Splashground?" I had 2 1/2 hours before Rick would be home. I thought this would pass the time and I was feeling really good about my flexibility and willingness to be such a "good mom" (smile). Everyone put on their swim stuff, we loaded up and headed to the park. Isaiah was so excited. This was his first "fun time" in the water since his cast came off. He was "going swimming" as he put it. We got there and about 10 minutes after we got everything settled, it started thundering and lightning. So, we loaded up and came back home. Why did I even bother? So much for my Mom of the Year Award. Tomorrow we are going to try to do something fun before nap time.

Soaking wet and loving it!

I even loaded up the scooters!!

Isaiah and Cody "swimming"
Laila was happy and cute, of course.

Smart, Sassy, Silly, and Oh, So Cute!

Lauren got her glasses. She was very excited to have them. Now, maybe she can actually see! That would be nice.

Smart

Sassy

Silly

Isn't she cute?

Walking - sort of

Isaiah started taking a few steps last night, only 10 days after he got his cast off!! Today he is getting around quite a bit. The only problem is that his right foot is turned out when he walks. It is pitiful and adorable all at the same time. Rick tells me to relax. It will just take some time to get everything back to normal. The momma bear in me wants to immediately take him in to make sure he will walk straight again some day. So, if you think about it pray that his little leg will straighten out and he will walk normally soon.

Getting glasses

Found out today that Lauren needs glasses. Just like her Daddy it is her right eye only. We picked them out and they are oh, so cute. Can't wait to share pics.

Laila Bear

I just had to take a minute to write all of the cute things down that Laila is doing. I have to admit when we were considering adoption I expected the children to be malnourished and have many delays for their ages. I just thought with their backgrounds of living in a 3rd world country and the 6 months they lived in the orphanage, they would just have some catching up to do. This has not been the case at all. If anything, it has been the exact opposite. Laila is brilliant. She is extremely verbal for her age and understands English like it is the only language she has ever heard. I figure if I don't document these cute little things she is doing they will be forever lost from my memory as the days fly by.



1. The day we took custody of Laila she had 2 teeth. Within the first week of having her, she had 5 more teeth come in. Now, only a few short months later, she has a total of 12 teeth, 4 of which are the first set of molars!!! She can eat with the best of them.



2. Speaking of eating, she has been a little chunker from the start. I will never forget what Cody said in Africa shortly after we got her, "Man, she has a lot of layovers!" I have never heard of the rolls on a baby referred to as layovers. It was hilarious. At one year old she wears 18-24 mos. clothes and weighs 24 lbs.!!



3. Laila was 9 months old when I first met her. I have no idea what she was doing before she joined our family, but from all appearances, she was not very interactive at the orphanage. In those first 3 weeks while we were still in Africa, she began clapping, pat-a-cake with roll 'em up, waving, scrunchy face, clicking her tongue, giving kisses, and "all done" in sign language.



4. She began crawling on May 2 and has been pulling up and cruising the furniture since then. She has yet to take those first steps, but we are expecting them any day.



5. She can now do "all done," "more," "please," and "thank you" in sign language. She blows kisses and does sweet baby(tilts her head and smiles). She says "uh-oh" when something drops. She says, "momma" and "daggy"(daddy) and she says all of the kids names. She loves doggys, and calls every animal by that name. When she is going to touch you, she says,"soft" and rubs her hand on you softly. She will try to say anything we ask her to. She is extremely verbal.



6. We call her Laila Bear because she likes to growl a lot. It is so cute. Rick will say her name in a growling voice and she repeats, "daggy" in that same voice.



7. She began climbing the stairs last week and goes all the way. Our concern is that she doesn't know how to go down yet. So far no falls (fingers crossed).



8. One of her favorite things to do is give high fives, kisses, and hugs. Throughout the day she randomly comes up to me and gives me kisses with a smack sound like a real kiss.



9. One of her least favorite things to do is get her hair fixed. She hates for me to comb or brush it. I expect this is going to complicate my life when she actually has enough hair for me to do something with.



10. One of my favorite things is to see her face light up with excitement when she sees Rick or me. When she has been away from either one of us, she will bounce, wave, her arms, and squeal when we come around. She then proceeds to show us all of her little tricks and abilities. It is so cute. She is the same way with her brothers and sisters. She is in love with all of them.



Those are the top 10 things about Laila right now. Next I will write about Isaiah and his over-the-top personality.

Too Many Doctors

I sat down today and looked over my calendar since we have brought Isaiah and Laila home. It has felt like medical issues have been HUGE in our family during this time period. I don't know if it has been a spiritual attack on us or if I should just expect life to be like this from this point on. I have taken my children or myself to over 50 doctors' appts. in the last 4 months. This includes 2 Urgent Care visits, 1 ER visit, 10 blood draws, 2 TB skin tests, 1 broken leg, 1 child with mono, 2 ultrasounds, dentist visits, orthodontist visits, eye exams, 3 stool samples, TB meds taken every day for the next 9 months, a cyst removed and the list goes on. Seriously is this normal? Because I am feeling like it needs to end. I know that we have 8 people in our family but this just seems outrageous to me. We are usually very healthy people. When I look at the appts. for the next couple of months it doesn't seem like it will let up any time soon. All of this to say, I am ready for a break from medical issues. I am ready to not be sitting in dr. waiting rooms. I am ready for my 2 1/2 year old to walk again!!

Abby-doo-ya

I took Abby to get her 7 year pictures made today. She is growing up fast. This year she will be in first grade and will get to each lunch at school!! Big stuff. As you can see in the pictures, she is sporting her new earrings! She has lots of nicknames. Some of them are Abby-doo-ya, Abba dabba doo, Abba doodle, and Abbacadabra.

Abby is a spunky little girl. You can see a bit of her attitude in this picture.



We love you, Abby.

Perspective

I needed some perspective today. Many of my days feel very long and hard. I go nonstop taking care of little people and often feel unappreciated. This morning was no exception. I got everyone fed, dressed, broke up a few battles, wiped noses, changed two poopy diapers, dished out a few time outs, gave some hugs and kisses, got the dishwasher running, got laundry started, gave fashion advice, got myself dressed, cleaned a mess, changed my clothes because they got dirty from the mess, and headed out the door by 9:10 AM. I had a dentist appt. so a friend of mine had agreed to keep the kids for me. We drove across town to drop them off, and as I was getting out of the truck, realized that my shoes don't match my outfit. You see, when I changed my shirt, from the mess, I forgot to get different shoes out. Not really a big deal, just icing on the cake. So, I dropped everyone off and raced to the dentist's office. When I arrived, I received and apology from them saying, "We called your house at 9:30 to tell you that our hygenist would not be in today. We need to reschedule your appt." I just stood there thinking, "are you serious?" So, we did and I felt that all my efforts for the morning were wasted. I called my friend and she said since she already has the kids (which was an amazing sacrifice on her part to begin with in my opinion) that I could just have some time to myself for the morning.

Now, what to do with that time? Do I run errands that would be much easier alone than with 6 kids? Do I go home and clean something uninterrupted? Do I take some time to read a book and just relax? Or, do I spend some time with God? I decided to run a quick errand, then go home and spend some time with God. As I was preparing for that time, I came across this video. It brought me to tears and reminded me of the calling God has placed on my life. The calling to mother my children, the calling to adoption that He brought us through this last year, and the calling to help the children of Swaziland. My inconveniences and frustrations would be a blessing to many around the world. The video brought back the perspective I needed in my life. I hope it does the same for you.

Lord, don't ever let me get so caught up in my little world that I forget about the big world of people in need that you have created. Help me to be a part of the solution not the problem.

Still not walking

It is now Sunday and Isaiah is still not walking. I never imagined it would take this long. His big complaint seems to be his ankle. I took him back to the orthopedic dr. on Friday to have them check it out. He was wincing in pain any time I would even touch it. He also wouldn't put any weight on it. They x-rayed it and it looked just fine. They just said it can take kids this age longer to build their strength and courage to start walking again. Needless to say, it has made this week quite difficult. He had become pretty self-sufficient with the cast. Now we were back to square one carrying him everywhere. It didn't help that Rick was out of town, too. The week was full of disasters. It always happens the week that he goes away to do his church planning for the next year. It is the hardest week of my year.

I woke up on Thursday morning to a huge mess!! This picture doesn't really give it justice. Imagine the whole kitchen and much of my carpet around the kitchen looking like this. In addition, we all ended up with orange feet despite how many times we washed them. I was not pleased and later had to apologize to my kids for my horrible reaction to this mess.


We are so glad to have Rick home. He got back on Friday afternoon. He is NEVER allowed to leave me again. :)

Lollipop

Lauren turned 9 in July. Today I took her to get her picture made. Her nickname is Lolly or Lollipop. She is such a beautiful little girl on the inside and out and I am so thankful to have her in my life. She has come alive through this adoption experience and has been such a great help to me. She will be in 3rd grade this year, wow! It doesn't seem real. She was only one month old when we moved to Colorado. Here she is:





I love you, Lolly!!

The Cast Is Off, BUT...

Monday was the big day. Isaiah could possibly get his cast off. I wasn't counting on it because I didn't want to be disappointed. You see Rick is out of town all this week and it would be a huge blessing to have that cast off and this little guy able to walk around again. So, with fingers crossed, we went to the dr. and sure enough, they said he was ready.

Safety goggles in place

Major giggling going on at this point. It tickled.

Prying it open

The big reveal, not as gross as I expected.

Now, here is the big BUT: I did not count on the fact that it would take him a few days to be able to walk again. It is now Wed. and he still isn't walking on it. We are actually back to square one when he first broke the leg because he was very mobile and skilled with his cast. Now he is hesitant and unable to move around like before. The dr. said it could take up to a week to get the strength and courage to use it. Pray for us. I am ready for this saga to end and for our little guy to be able to be his normal running around little self.

My Hubby

I have the greatest hubby in the world. Today is one of those days where I am reminded of that. It is not really any "special" day like a bday or anniversary. It is just a day where without him, I would be a mess. You see, he settles and calms me. He comforts and gives me perspective. He balances me when I am acting extreme. Sometimes he even swoops in and rescues me from myself. I am thankful for a man that is kind, generous, sensitive, patient(especially with me) and powerful.

He is also one handsome guy!!!

We will be celebrating 15 years of marriage in Sept.!!

He works so hard for our family. He does miracles with budgets and spreadsheets not just for us but for our church. He is my hero. I love you Rick!! Thank you for loving me so well.

Rick in working mode doing miracles with our money.

When God placed Africa on my heart 3 years ago, he didn't tell me that I was crazy. He didn't tell me to forget about it. He began praying, he went on a trip, he opened his heart, and he received the calling as well. Not many men would even allow themselves the emotions that are necessary to carry this burden for Swaziland that we feel.

Then, one year ago, when I told him at 5:00 Am one morning, that I thought God might be calling us to adopt, he said, "Well, then let's pray about that." He believes in me and constantly tells me what I am doing right. I love that man. God has truly blessed me beyond measure.

Load it, Unload it, Repeat over and over again

This the first installment of Welcome to My World -the ongoing events of my life. In these posts I will talk about the repetitive things I do as a mom of 6 children. I am sure many of you can relate and will appreciate the recognition of all of our hard work. Today we will talk about the dishwasher.

The title of this post says it all "Load it, Unload it, Repeat over and over again." That about sums it up. What else is there really to say. I must go load my dishwasher.

Very soon I will post how I have divided up jobs and privileges for the kids. Some of you have asked how I do it.