A September update...

Updates from the orphanage can be requested from our agency every 3 months and aren't mandatory for the orphanage to respond. Just last month I was at a breaking point and I hit refresh for the 7,000th time and there she was sweet Kai! Standing and sitting so steadily! Growing and changing. A great report and so sweet for this momma's heart. I wish I could send all my love across the ocean... God help me not to smother my girl! I love her in an unexplainable way! He's so good to us! I'm so thankful for adoption into the family of God and into families!!! It's such a powerful way to love. We are coming sweet girl!!!! 

This ones for Garden Love

                                   

The kids loved going to the garden this summer... And I did much more than I imagined I would. We have fresh veggies frozen & pickled and ate lots of yummy veggies this summer. The kids just raved about the carrots! You know things taste better when you get to pick them yourself! Kristy was our trusty garden loving friend & I'm beginning to think maybe the kids think she is there all of the time...I love having veggie loving kids. Hope the grandparents are proud!! All those times telling me I'd get scurvy paid off ;) 

Let your worship Rise!

                               

On Monday nights you'll find our house busy with young couples. We cover different Bible studies through the year. This year we decided to experiment and every 5 weeks do group with our families. Come together and worship and learn about the Lord. My kids were thrilled to be part of our Monday night. They always get to enjoy snacks, but have been curious about what we do. Our worship pastor came and led us in worship. Tinlee got to help everyone with the motions to the songs. And Carson, led us in Word time about worship...and taught the kids that worship is a part of us & we have to be the ones to let it rise to our creator. Worship is about who God is, what He has done for us, & what He has yet to do!! He gave them balloons & they wrote things about God on them. Then we released our balloons to see how high our worship can rise!! It was so much fun!! 

Psalm 95:6-7 "Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker; for he is our God and we are the people of his pasture, the flock under his care."

A masterpiece...

My Mom, the kids great-grandmother Nana Jill, made this for our master bathroom. It's perfect & I love that long after she is gone I'll get to admire her handiwork, and so will her grandchildren. Tinlee said just this morning, "At night mom it glistens"...oh my soul! It does and it's a beautiful piece I'll always treasure.

First Day 2013

3rd, 1st and pre-3...testament to how fast time flies! When we moved to dalhart we had one in Kinder Prep! After the summer that was fast and furious we look forward to fall as the crisp air rolls in and the leaves change and so do the kids! I love watching them learn, and we have to learn with them. It's time consuming and hard on all of us at times. But watching them 'get' a new concept or complete a new task is special with each if them. 

Family Camp!!!

Put it on your to do list, your family bucket list, whatever you do just do it. We love Sky Ranch- but it doesn't have to be an organized camp just get away in the quiet with your family and hear from The Lord. We have gone for 2 years and are signed up for next year. It's such a great week of intentional, unplugged family time! We love it and look forward to finishing our summer with this trip! There are so many things we love it's hard to pack it into just one thing:

Colorado Mountains

Christian counselors who love our children

Families seeking The Lord 

Intentional activities 

Fun fun fun

Food food food 

It's all so good

But the take away... We come home ready for the year. Changed and reinvigorated to do life better. Be better to one another & serve better. Derek and I so love watching our kids soak up nature and the sweet outdoors. There curiosity and need to know more about their creator is so evident when we are in the quiet. It's such a blessing and we are so thankful for the opportunity to get away and just be together. This year our caravan stopped at this waterfall. It was majestic! Tinlee paddled her own kayak and did a great job maneuvering around the lake. Harper and I were glad we didn't roll our kayak-she loved rocking from side to side. Sweet memories...

XIT

XIT brings a hustle & bustle to Dalhart that leaves excitement in the air. The kids love the rodeo, and since we are city peeps...it cracks me up a little. If we had a horse we wouldn't ever see Harper again...that girl loves to ride. We had fun at the XIT rodeo and fun with sweet friends... The kids loved sliding down the grassy hill and I always love to see the storm clouds roll in. The weekend always brings rain...an answer to many many prayers.
It's a fun time of year as the summer begins winding down. My oldest friend and her family came for a visit. We enjoyed the parade & festivities. Always a sweet time for our kids and especially for us. God has been so good to me and one of the many ways is the friendship I share with Crystal. She's makes me better... A better mom, friend and wife! And it's been such a treasure to share our lives together. She has seen and loved me at my worst & I'm so grateful that she's a part of our lives.

                                        

Dossier to CCAI...

October 17th our immigration paper and home study returned from the Chinese Consulate & we were ready when it arrived to make copies and get it to Colorado! Our 6 month paper chase!! So exciting and such a wonderful day to say check we are done!!!

                                 

sweet summertime...

So I was rummaging through the garage and found a scrapbook I started after our first trip to Disney World...I was pregnant with Harper, so now almost 4 years ago, where is that scrapbook...In the bag where I placed it after Harper arrived-that is so embarrassing, but this whole documenting our lives is hard. I'd stop but the trouble with that is my memory...it's foggy now, I can't imagine being sharper 20 years from now. And, time flies-that's no exaggeration...So when a baby book is empty it's not because we were short on memories/moments...just busy with a growing family.
So even after summer has come and gone we have stories to tell...One fun stop was Destin, Florida....we had so much fun, we travel with friends and their family & this trip we got to meet up with friends from home for dinner it was a treat!
We always have all these ideas and plans...and kids well they keep all those things in limbo. For this trip it was pics on the beach...I'm so glad there wasn't a camera following us; it didn't go as planned is what I'll say. But I captured a few sweet moments.
We can't predict their moods, nor ours, or who will have a meltdown when-and vacation is no exception. I was just scrolling through pics, remembering all the fun and not so fun moments...and it's funny how we have this idea in our head of how our lives will look and how they will be when this or that happens...but life happens...and really for us that has been the best of it all....all the good the bad and the real life stuff that makes such wonderful moments for us...

There is something about the crashing of the waves that just makes things better...the soft sand and waves rolling in is food for the soul. And the giggles and shrills that continued through the week were sweet commotion. We are blessed to work for  company that affords us blessings like trips with our friends and family. We are grateful & thankful for all that God has purposed in our lives.

"And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns." Philippians 1:6