Winding Down

Is summer really almost over? School starts in 8 days *squeal*. It will be an insane schedule, but it will be a schedule, nonetheless. And we thrive on s.c.h.e.d.u.l.e.

But before we can declare summer officially over, we must meet with our local adoption group! I'm so grateful for this group of families, and I appreciate all the hard work and planning to keep us connected (Paige!).

Picnic at the pool

Give a girl a bag of chips, and she's good to go!

See what I mean!

This daddy would jump in, boots and all, if necessary. (Trust me, it's happened)

"Not gettin' in, eh? I'll drench you anyway."

"Come to Bubba, Kasidi." Her reply, "No."

And so there you have it ~ quite possibly our last trip to the pool this summer.

Mama of the Year...

...probably not!
Let me preface this post by saying that I made this trip singlehandedly. (A little sympathy, please :)
This morning at 9 am I loaded two unsuspecting girls in the car, and we went to the doctor for a well baby check and blood draw.
What was I thinking?!?
One hour into it, two sippy cups and one handy dandy cup-o-snacks, and all was still well.
Then we registered at the lab and things went downhill fast.
Kasidi seemed to know something was up. She started grabbing my neck and pinching my arms.
Once in the lab with Kennah perched on top of the mega diaper-slash-everything-but-the-kitchen-sink bag, three big people holding sharp objects and safely in Mama's arms, Kasidi began to scream! Fortunately, Little Miss Joy has plump veins, and the vial was full in no time!

Kennah, on the other hand, has no veins! Bless her heart! On the third and final attempt, Daddy showed up ~ our hero! He knew just how to comfort his sweet girl as she cried, "Mommy! Daddy!" Oh my goodness, broke my heart!

We are praying they got enough blood for all the tests...because we won't be going back soon.

Even with big, ugly bruises on their arms, they are SO forgiving!
Bonus! Miss Kennah has gained 1.5 pounds and grown almost 1 inch!

All this harsh treatment has meant lots of snuggles today!

Fun Times

So...Friday Michelle texted me and asked if some of my kids wanted to spend the weekend with them. That's just the way she and Jay roll. They love my kids! And we love them.

They seriously invited a LOT of my kids, but in the end I could reasonably only send two :)

And then I received this picture in my inbox...

I think Kayden and Kinley Grace are having a blast at "Aunt Shell and Uncle Jay's," don't you?!?

Hurt Healer

I'm so excited about what's going on in our youth Sunday School class. We're reading this book:

Tony Nolan brought the message when we were at Falls Creek, and we even had a chance to meet the authentic, outta this world, crazy guy who loves the Lord with all his heart, and wants others to experience the same love he has discovered.

After a suggestion from the youth and time in prayer, we (April and I) decided to study one of his books for Sunday School.

We started today! I warned the students though ... this could get tough! And they were still ready to go. And from what I can tell, all of us are ready to: "....take a good look at our attempts to connect with them (unbelievers), and make some deep life changes for the sake of reaching out to a broken world." Hurt Healers ~ Tony Nolan

May He be glorified!

Survey Says...

It's the number 1 after-practice, after-game, anytime-you-need-a-snack snack.

And this little beauty...she'll be gone by noon Saturday, even with three of the kiddos absent (visiting friends).

Mr. Greenthumb spoils us!

Successful Day, Yes?

I have re-defined success :)

Yesterday six kids piled into the suburban (well, technically, I loaded and strapped in 2 of them), and we embarked on the horrendous task of school supply shopping, which rates second to multiple doctor's appointments in a single day.

After hitting St*ples and W*l-Mart, we retrieved 75 percent of the supplies.

Two other stores granted us two of the six pair of tennis shoes we need.

We renewed our strength with Ch*ck-Fila (yum!), and met Dad and more kids at the school.

In under two hours we enrolled six kids and headed to the softball field to watch Kenzie's first high school double-header. (Way to go, Lady Devils!)

We came home, fixed supper and went to bed on time...and then Kolton had midnight madness football practice, which I did not attend thank.you.very.much. (Thanks, Ty, for taking him!)

No one got lost, I didn't lose my mind, and we accomplished most of what we set out to do.

It was a successful day. (except I didn't get any softball pix)

Now, please excuse me while I wash the uniform (and six more loads I didn't get to yesterday) for another game today...

*A Few of the Things that Make Me Smile*

Homecomings (and friends who greet us and capture the moment!)

This Krew
Big sisters who keep me on my toes

College brothers coming home to visit
Both Hands!


Daddy lovin' on his babies
Boys and their tractors
Friends ~ near and far
Being surrounded by my littles
Pedis with my big girl
Friends who don't mind the monkey business
Weeny roasts in the driveway
Falls Creek, youth group and leaders

Homemade cookies and kids eating them

Kids at the pool

Sisters (in-law, but true sisters to me)

Sheri~
Ashlie~
Sleeping teens
Sleeping babies
Mr. Greenthumb
Drivers
Big brothers playing with their sibs

Sitting around the table
Cousins
And, well...

You smiled too, didn't you?!?

And those are just a few of the things that make me smile!

Anything?

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

Philippians 4:6

I love opening my journal every morning and lifting your requests to the Lord! It's such a privilege to be able to intercede for one another.

Some of you have even sent me updates already!

Don't worry if you haven't; I'm still praying for your original requests.

But bear in mind, my prayers don't change God's plans! My prayers change my heart, my perspective, my relationships.

If you do wish to update me or be added to my prayer time, feel free to email me.

I've been meditating on Phil 4:6, kinda out of necessity these days.

"Do not be anxious about anything." Really? Anything?

What about the BIG stuff?

What about the small stuff?

How many things happen in a day that can cause us anxiety? Anytime we're in the presence of other people is a good example. I think about my reaction to the things people say and do.

And instead of opening my big mouth I have the opportunity to give it to the Lord. I can talk to Him about it. And if I choose to do that instead of respond in haste, He always calms me. Every.single.time.

Then there are so many 'unknowns.' Especially when we seek and follow Him. But seriously, is He going to mislead us? No way!

Then there's the way in which we are to present our requests to Him ~ with thanksgiving! I l.o.v.e. that! I love being able to thank Him before I have any evidence of a positive outcome. But I know He is faithful and trustworthy, always!

So, that's how I'm lifting your petitions to the Father.

And can I ask you to pray for us?

After 3 weeks of an amazing harvest, suddenly the crop is showing signs of major damage. So much so that Clayton went to the field three times yesterday, walking through the corn, opening ears, searching for the 'perfect' produce.

We don't know if it's due to the extreme heat or not, but we do know we can't sell corn like this.

Our plan is to remove the damaged corn and start picking again August 20th, for approximately one week.

There are LOTS of problems with that. Since we stopped picking last week, we're talking about three weeks of no corn. Some customers are tired of waiting, some are losing interest and some are simply busy getting ready for school. Which is another thing ~ we won't have any help.

And I suppose I could go on about the problems, but I don't want to.

Because we serve a God who is sovereign! This is no surprise to Him. How are we going to respond to the prospect of a huge loss? I'm going to give Him thanks! This is His crop, after all! And if we look further into Philippians, we see 4:19 ~

And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.

AMEN!

Slumber

I'm sorry the picture is poor quality :(

I love watching my big kids serve the Lord! They each serve in different ways. One of the ways Kuyler serves is by playing on the praise team and singing to the Lord. Yesterday he really blessed us by singing "Slumber" by Needtobreathe.

I love Bear's unique voice, and this song is an awesome reminder of how we settle or fall into slumber, even though we are able to claim victory in the LORD.

Love this song!

Days; they force you back under those covers,
lazy mornings; they multiply,
glory's waiting outside your windows.
Wake on up from your slumber, baby open up your eyes.

Tongues are violent, personal and focused,
tough to be with your steady mind,
Hearts are stronger after broken.
Wake on up from your slumber, baby open up your eyes.

All these victims stand in line for,
Crumbs that fall from the table just enough to get by,
all the while your invitation.
Wake on up from your slumber, baby open up your eyes.
Wake on up from your slumber, baby open up your eyes.

Take from vandals all you want now,
please don't trade it in for life,
replaced your feeble with the fable.
Wake on up from your slumber, baby open up your eyes.
Wake on up from your slumber, baby open up your eyes.

All these victims stand in line for,
Find More lyrics at www.sweetslyrics.com
Crumbs that fall from the table just enough to get by,
all the while your invitation.
Wake on up from your slumber, baby open up your eyes.
Wake on up from your slumber, baby open up your eyes.

Sing like we used to,
dance when you want to,
taste for the breakthrough open wide.

All these victims stand in line for,
Crumbs that fall from the table just enough to get by,
all the while your invitation.
Wake on up from your slumber, baby open up your eyes.
Wake on up from your slumber, baby open up your eyes.
Wake on up from your slumber, baby open up your eyes.

Come on, sing like we used to,
and dance like you want to.
Come on darlin' open your eyes.
I wanna sing like we used to.
I wanna dance like we want to.
Come on darlin' open up your eyes.

First There Were 2

All we knew 26 years ago was that we loved each other and had our whole lives ahead of us.

Several years ago we began to love the Lord (praise Him for His mercy and patience with us!)

Then there were 12!

We obviously had no idea how full our life together would really be.
Happy 26th Anniversary, my awesome, God-fearing husband!

I'm excited to see what the Lord has in store for the next 26 years.

How Much?

It happened again last night. After coming to the door and seeing me wrangle some of the krew, a corn customer later engaged in conversation with Clayton.
He wanted to ask a 'personal question' : How much do they cost?
CJ did an awesome job of evading the question by sharing our testimony and some of the miracles the Lord has worked in our lives.
The man asked again: How much do they cost.
CJ shared that we've never had the funds to adopt, that less than one year ago we began the process without 1 dime. ( I remember the day we gave thanks and praised the Lord for what He was going to do!)
The man asked a third time: So how much do they cost?
Finally, CJ told him the average cost for our adoption processes, to which he replied, 'Wow, you must believe in God!'.
The conversation continued and the man was invited to church to see other amazing ways that God is moving.
Maybe the real question is: How much are they worth?!?!
"Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it". Matthew 13:45-46
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We Can Help!!!

My friend Gayly is leaving in a few days to bring her Treasure home from China! But her trip includes a visit to Morning Star Foster Home, and we can help make her visit extra special.

MS can always use items for the babies they care for, and Gayly will deliver them if we will just get them to her ASAP!

Please check out Gayly's blog to see how you can help make her visit special!

Kisses from Katie

I just love Katie's heart!

I don't know about you...

...but I can learn a lot about the Father's love from her.

Colossal Everything!

My girls decided the way to beat the heat is to turn the oven on 375 and bake colossal cookies. Didn't cool us off, but it sure made the suffering sweeter :)

And if you can't tell, my baby has a colossal temp too. Poor thing.
And speaking of colossal...oh my word! It's hot! Kenzie has softball practice two hours every morning, and the first high school game is next week - whew! Mr. Greenthumb and our big boys are out in the heat selling the corn that was picked in the crisp 98 degrees at the dawn of this day :( Folks, I just loaded 5 bags of corn into a man's trunk, and I can vouch for the temp. I can't even lure the dog out of the cooler!
It's so hot, in fact, we're not picking corn for another week. Seems the worms love the heat and they're damaging the crop...so we are doing some major eradication over the next few days in hopes of saving the last half of the Lord's crop. That's right, we still have a colossal crop...and now we need some folks with a colossal appetite for sweet corn ;-)

And the word of the day is....

From Death to LIFE!

…Offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life…Romans 6:13

Wow! God always knows what we need, doesn’t He!

As I was reading my devo this morning it occurred to me how easy it is to list the things that oppress me. I can quickly name the ‘wounds,’ offenses, obstacles, failures, ‘giants’…whatever I want to call them.

But how easily do I recognize the successes? The triumphs? My lowly dreams that were thwarted by God’s bigger-than-I-can-imagine plans?

This passage stirs my heart. Truth is, He did bring me from death to life. But would anyone know it? Do I live like I’m still ‘dead’?

When I complain about the darkness and fail to see even the glimmer of light; when I try to climb the mountains in my own strength; when I settle for my own measly goals rather than seeking His plans; when I ask for a good day rather than the grace to react to the not-so-good, I’m living as if I’m ‘dead’.

The Lord gave me life for a reason! With His life comes power. But I have to yield my self. That’s so hard to do sometimes! But in yielding my self and disregarding the things that bother me, His life can be seen. For me it’s a daily, hourly, even moment-by-moment journey.

Lord, thank you for bringing me from death to life. Now help me LIVE!

The American Dream

Really?

And the temp keeps rising.
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Good News and IRS

Seems like a bit of a contradiction, eh? But there is good news! We are one of the thousands of adoptive families still waiting on the adoption-tax-credit-now-turned-refund-for-tax-years-2010-and-2011.

Remember this post back in April? At that point we were 60 days post filing and received 'the letter' requesting receipts for our first 5 adoption processes. I produced and mailed those receipts within 24 hours, only to receive another letter 30 days later stating the IRS would respond within 60 days. At 40 days I began calling the IRS once a week (because I have the time to do this - bahahahaha), always getting the same polite response: "Your case should be up for review soon."

Soon? Ya'll, I've been through enough adoption processes to know that soon is a relative term!

Finally in June we scored! Once I told the representative we were past the 60 days, she referred me to the Taxpayer Advocacy Service. That's when things started moving. Well, moving faster than they were before :)

Basically our advocate is the mediator between the IRS and our family, informing us exactly what documents are needed and then furnishing said documents directly to the proper person, all the while anticipating a timely response.

I'm happy to say that now, 40 days later, we've been notified that the IRS is going to issue our refund finally! It will likely be 7 months post filing once our refund is issued, without penalty and interest, of course ;-)

Now mind you, we aren't sitting around counting the money just yet, and we won't be wealthy when it does come...but we do hope to be sporting one of these lovelies to tote our krew in style soon.

What I'd really like to do with the refund is bring another child home, but then people would say we're crazy...and I worry so much about that. (bahahahahahaha)