Picture by a brick wall

I can't wait to one day show this picture to our adopted daughter: her brothers and sister about to head into the post office to send off the applications to begin the process of bringing her home!  Yay!

BIG news

I've been waiting so long to get to write this post. I'm so excited to share our news with the cyber-world! 

WE'RE ADOPTING!

Let me tell you the story of how we got to this point though, it's the best part (so far!). So one day early last November, Chris shared with me how he felt like God was calling our family to adopt. Chris said he was feeling like since we are adopted into God's family, it's such a great way to show others what Jesus is like by adopting a child into our family. Basically, we are adopted, so why shouldn't we also extend that some love and acceptance to someone as well? I had been having similar feelings, God laying on my heart a burden for chidren besides my own and the desire to grow our family even more.

These desires and though in and of themselves are from God, tiny little miracles, for several reasons:

1. Before Ashten was even born, Chris' vasectomy was scheduled. We were both sure 4 kids was all we wanted or could afford or handle. So physically, between the two of us, having another biological child was not an option. I think God planned it this way so that we wouldn't be tempted to go the "easy" route and just have more of our own.
2. The fact that both Chris and I felt prompting in this area at the same time in different ways is amazing and totally from God.
3. Chris had brought up adoption a long time ago when I was pregnant with Logan. I immediately squashed that idea because I thought I could never love another child as much as one I carried in my womb for 9 months. However, this time, I have no doubts about that. I feel like we will have another daughter in our family, and yes, her skin will be a different color and she will have grown in some other woman's belly, but that doesn't make her any less a part of our family.

So then we began to pray and think and research and question. Was this something God really wanted for us? (I knew this thought and desire to adopt wasn't from me at least, that much I was sure of.) How in the world would we even begin to afford this? What would our friends and family think if we did this? What would God think if we didn't? So, questions, doubt and fear characterized the next 2-3 months of our life. We sought out other families who had adopted and picked their brains. We researched agencies and attended an informational meeting. We prayed and prayed and prayed and prayed. All the while keeping this a secret from almost everyone we know. 

Then about mid-January we both received the "final straw" confirmation that this was in fact what God wanted for our family and we began the application process. We also finally got to tell our family and friends, which was such a relief! We have definitely got mixed reactions from them, some good and some bad, but we are not doing this because of what people may or may not think of us, we are doing this because this is what God has called us to and we are doing our best (with His help) to trust Him and act in faith.

A couple of weeks ago we completed all the application forms and sent them in. We are now currently waiting to start our homestudy, which has to completed before we can really move forward with anything else. But we still have tons to do in this waiting period. Paperwork (I've heard some refer to it as the paperwork pregnancy) is the name of the game around here. We are beginning to get information together to apply for grants, although we have to wait till our homestudy is completed to submit for those. We have to take some training/education classes, which is a government requirement for anyone adopting. And we are still battling feelings of doubt and fear and discouragment.  Update: We just found out last week that we owe about half the total cost here in the next few months, by the time the homestudy is complete.  That puts us in a bit of a lurch since we were planning on having to only pay for the homestudy itself and then have time to apply for grants and/or fundraise for the extra funds.  So we might be delayed a little as we try to raise those monies.  Please pray!!!

As of right now our intent is to adopt a girl, somewhere between 0-2 years old from Ethiopia. When we first started talking about adoption, we both felt very strongly that we were going to do international adoption. Then, for whatever reason, we both felt led to Africa. Then, within the span of a week or so, Ethiopia was probably brought up 5-6 times through different people and in different ways. So, that's why Ethiopia, itt's just a country God has burdened our hearts for. As far as the age and sex, we just knew we wanted to keep our birth order the same and we also wanted Ashten to get to have a sister.
We would really appreciate your prayers, if you think of us. For this adoption to end in a sucessful placement of a child, God is going to have to keep doing what He does and working things out for us. While we pray for financial provision, grace to trust Him more and a quicker than normal process, our greatest desire is that God would get the glory the whole way through. The timing of this is really ironic, I'll have to explain more in another post, but I think God is definitely setting Himself up to show His strength in our weakness. Please pray with us that God would provide everything we need along the way and that we would be faithful to always give Him the glory for what He has done and will do.
So that's where we're at. We have more questions than answers at this point, as I'm sure you all do too. If so, please leave a comment and I will do my best to answer questions either in the comments section or later in a FAQ post.

I'll leave you with a couple of verses that God has really used to speak directly to us in the last few months:

A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows,
is God in his holy dwelling.
God sets the lonely in families,

He leads out the prisoners with singing;
but the rebellious live in a sun-scorched land. Psalm 68:56

I know that You can do everything,
And that no purpose of Yours can be withheld from You. Job 42:2

Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this:

to look after orphans and widows in their distress

and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. James 1:27

Would you rather?

Right out of college I had a very boring job.  I worked for the Department of Defense doing programming for military payroll.  Or I should more appropriately say that the company I worked for did that, I did nothing for the 18 months I worked there.  I was given some responsibility or a task maybe 3-4 times the whole time I was there.  There just wasn't enough work and since it was easier for someone else to just do it than to teach me how to do something, I did nothing.  I would literally take a nap at my desk sometimes and no one would even notice!  After Brayden was born, I lasted 6 more weeks at that job before I quit to be a full-time stay-at-home mommy!  Best career move ever, by the way. 

My sister, Monica, who was in high school at the time (I think?) and I would email each other back and forth all day with "would you rather" questions.  Something to kill the time and get the creative juices flowing (those questions are hard to come up with sometimes!).  Oh how I wish I would've kept those emails, some of those were just funny!

So, in memory of my short-lived career as a computer programmer, I present to you:

WOULD YOU RATHER???

(Please comment with your answers, it's just more fun if everyone plays!)

1. Would you rather have a 3rd eye or no nose?

2. Would you rather not be able to see or not be able to hear?

3. Would you rather be a bad singer or a bad dancer?

4. Would you rather always lose or never play?

5. Would you rather have a big house and have to clean it yourself or a small house and have a maid?

6. Would you rather wear the same outfit for the rest of your life or eat the same meal for the rest of your life?

7. Would you rather live without your cell phone or without your computer?

8. Would you rather live in outerspace or under the sea?

9. Would you rather be able to talk with animals or speak 10 foreign languages?

10. Would you rather eat 100 ants or 10 grasshoppers?

So I know this is kind of dumb, but having fun and being silly sometimes is okay!  Thanks for playing. 

Science fair

This year, Brayden and Logan participated in the school science fair (instead of doing the Pinewood derby at church).  It was a good experience for them, something new they had never done before. 

Brayden did "What Conducts Electricity?" using an electrical circuit kit my parents had given him for his birthday.  Brayden tried different objects to see if they would complete the circuit and turn the light on.  He worked hard doing research and experimenting, it was a good learning time for him.  Unfortunately, he didn't win a prize and he was sad about that, but we are proud of his work and his effort nonetheless!

Logan did "How Do Dolphins Communicate?" since he LOVES dolphins right now.  He learned about echolocation and how dolphins use clicks and whistles in different ways.  He got some of those recordable sound things from Build-a-Bear and recorded a dolphin click and whistle to put with his project.  That was a neat little "extra".  Logan's project won 3rd place in the 1st grade category.

No ordinary man

Today we get to celebrate Chris' birthday!  It's such a fun day to celebrate the wonderful and selfless husband and father God gave to our family!  He is a treasure, even though he doesn't get told it enough by me or the kids.  He does what he does without much thanks or recognition, but he does what he does because he is not seeking man's approval, but God's.
Take, for example, Chris' career. Teaching is not what he set out to do. In fact, he went to a pretty prestigious engineering college and got a degree in Chemical Engineering. But somewhere during his junior year, he felt the nudge from God to pursue teaching instead. And I think I can honestly say that Chris has found his niche. Obviously I haven't been in one of his classes, but to just see the dedication he has and hard work he puts in and the way he interacts with and gets to know the students, it's amazing.  Teaching isn't a job where you get a lot of praise, in fact most of the feedback he gets is negative, both from the students and the parents.  To persevere when it doesn't seem like it's worth it shows a lot of passion, I'm so proud of him!

When we got married, I wouldn't say either of us had a really, really close relationship with God.  We were both Christians and we went through the motions and gave off the appearance, but we weren't walking closely with God.  However, even in that time, Chris was still obedient to God, submitting to His will for Chris' career and our family.  I believe that God's faithfulness drew us closer to Himself over the years. All this to say, I am proud to be married to a man who seeks God and follows Him no matter the cost.  It hasn't always been easy and Chris especially has faced a lot of criticism, but having a husband like him makes my submission as a wife so much easier.
What an amazing father I married, and I didn't even know at the time.  I can't imagine the pressure of being the head of the household and a father, but he leads and guides our family, specifically our children, with love and with much grace, using God as His example.  Our children are so blessed to have a father like him, even though they might not fully realize it for many more years.  I'm blessed to be on a "team" as a parent with him, we compliment each other even in ways that would make you laugh!

I say all this not to try to "one-up" anyone else's husband, but just to celebrate the 32 years of life of the man I married.  Life isn't always easy, but it's been easiER with Chris by my side.  I love you sweetie.....HAPPY BIRHTDAY!

DS fun

The boys received a Nintendo 3DS as a gift from Chris' parents for Christmas.  Their favorite game to play lately has been Mario World (or whatever it's called).  But they have one tiny problem.  They aren't always the best at not dying on the levels.  (I really don't have room to talk though, they are way better than me - not kidding!)  They rush or are too risky and they die, often.  Then they run out of men and have to restart.  Not a big deal, just a nuisance to them.  So, every once in a while, Chris will get on and win a bunch of extra men for them.  And he might just enjoy it just a tad in the process - wink!  What a sweet daddy!

Books and baby dolls

Ashten is becoming such a little girl lately.  It's so fun to watch her practice being a mommy with her babies.  She has about a million 10 baby dolls and she will play with each of them throughout the day.  She has her favorites for sleeping with, and feeding and reading to and cuddling, it's really cute.  And she LOVES books.  If I could read to her all day, she wouldn't complain.  Her favorite books right now are princess books and Elmo. She especially likes interactive books like "lift-the-flap" or something.  And any book with a princess or horse or duck or baby in it, she will love it!

Belmar Buddy

One cool thing that Brayden's teacher does is select one child each week to be Belmar Buddy.  That child gets to do some fun stuff to tell the class a little bit more about themselves.  Brayden waited so long to be Belmar Buddy as he didn't get picked all first semester and it wasn't till the 2nd or 3rd week of second semester that his name was chosen.  He asked me on a Thursday to pray that he would get chosen that week and then on Friday after school he got in the car and said "mom! God answered your prayer! I got Belmar Buddy!".  It was so cool to see God come through for him like that!

So Brayden had to make a timeline of his life:

Show something he's proud of (building a big lego guy all by himself):

Show his favorite toy (lightsaber):

His favorite shirt:

And make a "guess how many" jar (he cut up straws into 127 pieces):

It was fun to see Brayden's answers to this little exercise, like a little glimpse into his world.