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Thursday, June 30, 2011

Impact

What a week - and it's not over yet! Some of us had '1 hour of solitude' today with the Lord. It was incredible! I can't wait to hear the things He spoke to them.
If I could sum up in one word what the Lord is whispering to me this week, I would say 'impact'. If I live sold out for Him, how would I impact my family, my friends, my church, my community, my country, my world. I wanna know.
Ps, to my friend Debbie R, I met your middle school pastor and wife and their darling little man!
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Wednesday, June 29, 2011

God Moments

Just have to share! Our speaker this week - Tony Nolan - has a daughter from China!
And our worship leader - Stephen Miller - leaves Sunday to get his 2 boys from Ethiopia!!!
3 college students have seen the girls and told me they want to adopt, and several adults have asked me about the process.
Lord, be glorified!
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Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Sickies

I think I know why Kasidi hasn't been herself - her right ear is draining icky green stuff. But antibiotics will be here tomorrow thanks to Christina!
Kenzie also has a stomach bug but it's getting better.
Youth gals play softball today at 4 - praying they don't get too hot.
4 littles are doing great at Michelle's, and the big guys are getting ready for corn harvest - possibly next week!
Kennah is quite the social butterfly! She's so precious - and today she ran to me, threw her arms around me and hugged me! Be still, my heart!!! Yes, we are supposed to be here.
Blessings to you all!
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Long/Short Night

Kennah went to bed around 10:30 ...and I finally got Kasidi to stay in bed after 1 :( May be a long day for the little squirts. Service was awesome last night! The youth are awesome! The sponsors are awesome! So glad I'm here!
Youth dorm or baby central?
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Monday, June 27, 2011

Ready for church!

Kasidi and Kennah's first tabernacle service!
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And We're Off!

FALLS CREEK, here we come!!!

Sunday, June 26, 2011

Testing...

Seeing if I can post via my phone...just 'cause.
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Saturday, June 25, 2011

Sweet Surprises!

Today's mail had a beautiful surprise for me!
This canvas bag and tee from my friends at Katelyn's Fund! I've been on the blogging team at KF for a little while (although I haven't carried my weight through the whole China venture). Talk about a godly group of women! And the tee, well, it's made by my peeps at Wild Olive!
Thank you so much, Sheila! Just in time to wear to Falls Creek!

Consumed (and IRS update)

This year's Falls Creek theme is Consumed, from Psa 103 ~
Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless His holy name.
More than anything, I want to be consumed with Him and His sufficiency. But oh, how I struggle with being consumed by so many other things. My heart knows they are trivial in the scheme of things, but they have to be dealt with daily. The point is...priority.

I know for certain I'm supposed to go to camp this week, as crazy as it will be. Even the certainty doesn't mean it's easy. Last night I thought I'd reached my breaking point with trying to prepare more **tax docs, a meal, laundry, packing and baking cookies for camp. All I wanted to do was sit down and play with my babies. I hate moments like that. Eventually I realized it was my perspective that needed to change. I was overwhelmed and consumed with my tasks as if they were going to last forever.

**IRS update ~ we have been assigned a taxpayer advocate. Yesterday she reviewed our file, and according to the IRS, all that's lacking is a 'decree' for three of the kiddos. We sent the decrees initially, but we have re-sent them to our advocate, and she thinks the matter will be resolved...within three months. That will be some 210 days since filing. But we do have hope because the IRS confirmed our substantiating documents and seems to agree with our refund amount. Maybe by Christmas we will have a van...

But I digress. If you think of the crazy people shown above, will you please pray for us. I know the Lord has something big for us next week!

Friday, June 24, 2011

A Kookout!

Last night was perfect for a little driveway weeny roast.
We were gathering timber and found a baby!
She's a keeper!


Even the big kids had fun :)



Have you seen those pillow-size marshmallows? They make awesome smores!
Simply Good times!

Thursday, June 23, 2011

Bury It!

I'm a visual person. I like to teach with visuals, and I like to be taught with visuals. So when I read my devo this morning, it really resonated with me. Not just because it was relevant, but also because it was visual. The author shared an illustration of a burial. It could be an offense, a burden, a hurt.

Imagine...
taking a shovel and digging a hole. make it really deep. then toss the thing into the hole. go ahead, toss it!
then bury the thing. (remember, it's deep.) keep shoveling the dirt on top.
next, plant beautiful, blooming flowers on top of the now buried thing.
finally, swiftly run away and don't look back!
What a pertinent image for the verse, "Love covers over all wrongs."
Is your hurt too deep?
The offense too big?
The burden too heavy?
Bury it!
I'm reminded of how many of my wrongs God has buried ...and then brought forth new life.
Lord, help me bury the things in my life, and please turn them into something that glorifies YOU.

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

A Day In The Life

Typical stuff~
The laundry that I now fold on the floor, so Little Miss can sit in my lap, has been scattered.
Helpers in the kitchen, complete with smart remarks.
Waffles and bacon for supper ~ yum!
The cleanup crew. After giving the littles a bath, I stumbled onto this...
...a competition to see who could hit the cup with the most precision...and then clean up its contents with another snap of the towel. Boys. I have to hand it to them though - they do a fantastic job of cleaning up, thanks to Dad's teaching!
Italic
The after math bath. Where is my housekeeper? Musta run off with the limo driver and the cook.
Don't even have words!



We drug the luggage out to pack 6 people for Falls Creek and 4 people for another place. Gives me visions of lost luggage and missed flights. Good thing camp is only a 3 hour bus ride away!
Yesterday for the first time I took the two new Littles out by myself...to Kayden's 8 am dentist appointment. Probably won't ever schedule an appointment that early again! Then we had a 2:30 doctor's appointment. Probably won't ever schedule two medical visits in the same day either. Thank goodness Daddy swooped in and saved the day!

Summer League is officially over. Summer sports camps will be finished today. And Kolton's driver's ed will be finished today. Gee, what ever will we do?

We've had some trying times with the girlies. Kennah sometimes cries out in the night, but when we check on her she's not awake. I'm all too familiar with night terrors. And she hates going to bed...but once she stops crying she's out.

Night before last Kasidi woke up crying and wouldn't go back to sleep unless she was in my arms. And last night she whimpered in the night, but finally went back to sleep. She also fights bedtime. I have no idea what this will look like at Falls Creek. It makes me tired thinking about it, but I'm moving forward on faith, and I've never discerned the Lord's plans based solely on present circumstances. It's a good thing the other sponsors and students love me :)

Our church rocks! We put out a plea for a second pack 'n play and a walker to take to the Creek, and in no time we had what we needed! The girls' dorm will be equipped with a rocking chair, 2 cribs, an air mattress for 2 other Littles, strollers, high chairs and toys.

Clayton and I both believe I'm supposed to go, and I can't wait to see what the Lord has in store! Thank you for praying for us!

***If you spot my housekeeper, will you please tell her she's desperately needed here!***

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Happy 4th Birthday, Kinley Grace!

You are a beautiful Treasure!



And a character!

It was a beautiful day!

Monday, June 20, 2011

Growth

We're seeing it!
In more ways than one.
The corn crop is looking awesome. Harvest should start around July 10 and run till mid August. (that's a lot of hard quality family time!)
Severe storms with hail are projected for this week ~ that always gets us praying in the middle of the night!
You can kinda see the various stages of the corn here...
Tassels! That means less than 22 days till sweet corn!
And then there's these two, growing like crazy!
Kennah has gained 4 ounces! Hey, it's something, right?!?
We made the decision yesterday that I WILL go to Falls Creek next week (*squeal*)! After much prayer, the Lord spoke.

I know neither the Lord nor the sponsors need me there, and I know it won't be easy with two little girls...but growth occurs in the hard places!

Saturday, June 18, 2011

Day at the Pool

Seemed like a good idea.
Have an early lunch and be at the pool by noon.

It worked...for a while.






Kinda went downhill. Next time, nap first, then swim!
Kuyler's little helpers.

This was one of those days I realized how little control I have! But no matter how badly it started, it was nothing peanut butter cookies couldn't fix!

The past two days it seems Kennah and Kasidi have gone backward in their transition. It's a reality check for me! Naptime is hard; bedtime is hard; lots of holding in between. How am I able to blog? I have a short video (that won't upload) that shows 1 baby on my lap, and a whole krowd around me:) It's goooood!