Yes, it's crazy around here. Thanksgiving holiday stuff. Packing. Boxes everywhere. Excitement (and apprehension) of both the coming holidays and the move. And then we suddenly realized that our settlement date is 2 days earlier than we realized. So yes, it's a little crazy here...
Hopefully will be blogging more after the dust all settles....which may be awhile....
Tuesday, November 26, 2013
Friday, November 22, 2013
Thanksgiving...
My favorite Thanksgiving hymn.
"My God, I Thank Thee"
Adelaide Anne Procter, 1858
My God, I thank Thee, who hast made
The earth so bright,
So full of splendor and of joy,
Beauty and light,
So many glorious things are here,
Noble and right.
I thank Thee, too, that
Thou has made Joy to abound,
So many gentle thoughts and deeds
Circling us round;
That in the darkest spot of earth
Some love is found.
I thank Thee more that all our joy
Is touched with pain;
That shadows fall on brightest hours,
That thorns remain,
So that earth's bliss may be our guide,
And not our chain.
I thank Thee, Lord, that Thou hast kept
The best in store;
We have enough, yet not too much
To long for more,
A yearning for a deeper peace
Not known before.
Adelaide Anne Procter, 1858
My God, I thank Thee, who hast made
The earth so bright,
So full of splendor and of joy,
Beauty and light,
So many glorious things are here,
Noble and right.
I thank Thee, too, that
Thou has made Joy to abound,
So many gentle thoughts and deeds
Circling us round;
That in the darkest spot of earth
Some love is found.
I thank Thee more that all our joy
Is touched with pain;
That shadows fall on brightest hours,
That thorns remain,
So that earth's bliss may be our guide,
And not our chain.
I thank Thee, Lord, that Thou hast kept
The best in store;
We have enough, yet not too much
To long for more,
A yearning for a deeper peace
Not known before.
Thursday, November 21, 2013
Thursday Musings
November.
The month when facebook feeds are filled with "Thankful for" this and that.
When I remember some family members (like Randy's grandmother, and my grandfather perhaps) who are not with us here any more.
This November is packed with normal life (cooking, cleaning, laundry, etc.) and packing for our move.
Earlier this month the leaves were amazing. Now the leaves are mostly gone from the trees.
We're wrapping up yard work. Wrapping up our life in this home.
How do you wrap up 19 (Randy) and 16-1/2 (me) years in a home? How do you help kids process the big emotions of leaving the only home they've ever known...even for one that will be wonderful once we are settled into it. (And I'm sure there's an analogy here paralleling moving with death...but I'm not delving into that one today.) We talk about it. We drive by the house whenever we can. We start packing up boxes. Start making this house feel more like an empty shell and less like home. And yet it is home, our love, our laughter, our tears and frustrations. And in time, the next house will fill with those emotions too. And one day, we'll know that it is "home".
I do remember, too, that when we first got married, and I moved in here with Randy, that at first I felt as though I was living in "his" house. I can't remember how long it took until it felt like "ours". But I'm pretty sure it included time/memories, pictures, and shared stuff. So we will take all our stuff and our photos to make the new house home. No, we are not going out and buying all new furniture...what we have will work nicely...and help us feel more at home.
Everything seems to be coming together...but part of me is waiting to see if there will be any crisis before it's said and done...seems so often that happens in these things...but it usually all works out in the end.
We are so thankful that God has enabled us to follow this dream. And someday I'll blog about how it all came about...
The month when facebook feeds are filled with "Thankful for" this and that.
When I remember some family members (like Randy's grandmother, and my grandfather perhaps) who are not with us here any more.
This November is packed with normal life (cooking, cleaning, laundry, etc.) and packing for our move.
Earlier this month the leaves were amazing. Now the leaves are mostly gone from the trees.
We're wrapping up yard work. Wrapping up our life in this home.
How do you wrap up 19 (Randy) and 16-1/2 (me) years in a home? How do you help kids process the big emotions of leaving the only home they've ever known...even for one that will be wonderful once we are settled into it. (And I'm sure there's an analogy here paralleling moving with death...but I'm not delving into that one today.) We talk about it. We drive by the house whenever we can. We start packing up boxes. Start making this house feel more like an empty shell and less like home. And yet it is home, our love, our laughter, our tears and frustrations. And in time, the next house will fill with those emotions too. And one day, we'll know that it is "home".
I do remember, too, that when we first got married, and I moved in here with Randy, that at first I felt as though I was living in "his" house. I can't remember how long it took until it felt like "ours". But I'm pretty sure it included time/memories, pictures, and shared stuff. So we will take all our stuff and our photos to make the new house home. No, we are not going out and buying all new furniture...what we have will work nicely...and help us feel more at home.
Everything seems to be coming together...but part of me is waiting to see if there will be any crisis before it's said and done...seems so often that happens in these things...but it usually all works out in the end.
We are so thankful that God has enabled us to follow this dream. And someday I'll blog about how it all came about...
Monday, November 18, 2013
The weekend
This past weekend, 2 friends and I attended a "Joy for the Journey Retreats" Retreat for Adoptive Moms at Sandy Cove in Maryland.
It was cloudy for most of the weekend.
We had 2-hour sessions Friday evening, Saturday morning, afternoon, and evening, and Sunday morning.
I'm not sure what kind of nest this is.
The main sessions covered transracial adoption, infertility, parenting older adoptees, outrageous faith, What to expect when it's not what you're expecting, dealing with lying & stealing, being connected, and a Q&A time.
I attended two workshops: "Connecting, Nurturing, and Restoring Hope: The Art and Science of Bonding" and "Introduction to Trust-based Parenting". There were other workshops offered including ones on homeschooling, lifebooks, black hair care, and marriage.
My corner of our room.
I enjoyed 5 delicious meals (+ some snacks) that I didn't have to prepare or clean up after. And there was plenty of coffee and tea on hand for whenever we wanted it.
I neglected to get a photo with the other women who went with me. (If you read this, sorry...or maybe you're not!) :-)
Sunday morning the sun broke through the fog.
There were assorted vendors as well as a Gift Shop and I got some Christmas shopping completed.
While I probably would've preferred a bit more time to relax, we did have periods of time here and there to relax. The water calls my name. I enjoyed sitting out on the end of the pier.
We left around 3:00 on Friday and arrived back home around 3:00 on Sunday. It was nice to get away. Of course, because all of our stories and experiences are different, I didn't necessarily agree with every speaker on everything. But I did enjoy myself. I relaxed. I appreciated not being "on call". I knew that Randy could handle everything quite competently and that I did not have to worry about the home front. I laughed. I interacted with the other women. I enjoyed meeting a friend of a friend.
I won a raffle! (Possibly because everyone else put their tickets in the big ticket chances?!)
2 bags of coffee, a headband, and some plastic bracelets.
It was a lovely weekend.
It was good to take that break.
And it's good to be back home again.
Tuesday, November 12, 2013
Time Change
coupled with all that's going on around here has me waking up early. Frequently I have a little boy who comes and snuggles next to me so I still stay in bed so he doesn't wake up, but this morning I did get up anyway. I love the stillness of these early, dark hours. So here are my random thoughts this morning...
- As you may remember, I'm focusing on a book of the Bible each month this year. For November I am focusing on the book of Jonah. I am also working through the book "Unglued" by Lysa Terkeurst.
- Mark has physical therapy (here) today.
- We have Play Group today...the first one with Zach at school. It should be a bit calmer (guests stress him), but I know he will be disappointed when he learns that he missed it.
- Tomorrow I'm hoping to get our new health insurance taken care of. Due to all the changes, our current (small) company decided to stop offering insurance; so we needed to have new insurance to go into effect on January 1.
- Today is 11/12/13. Small things amuse me.
- I finally finished reviewing a bunch of books for the school library. Nothing like moving to get me going on finishing up things so that I don't need to move them.
- It is cold here. The kids are hoping for some snow soon. We'll see...
- And since there really isn't much to ramble on about right now, I think I'll stop.
Friday, November 8, 2013
Friday morning...
It's early...still dark. The kids have off school today. I got up when Randy & Josiah got up (to go to work) because a squirmy little boy crawled in beside me sometime during the night, disturbing my sleep. Anyway. I also knew that the photos from last Saturday would now be online for me to preview. They're beautiful. No idea how I'm going to decide!
Today I'd like to do some cleaning. We'll see.
Yesterday I experimented with making "Rice Krispie Treats"...but with Fruity Pebbles instead. The kids like them...but I'd stick to the regular ones for myself.
Have a lovely weekend!
Today I'd like to do some cleaning. We'll see.
Yesterday I experimented with making "Rice Krispie Treats"...but with Fruity Pebbles instead. The kids like them...but I'd stick to the regular ones for myself.
Have a lovely weekend!
Sunday, November 3, 2013
One more thing...
I forgot to mention a fun part of our Saturday. We went to Randy's parents house. Susie from Marks Studio took photos of our family. It was a lovely fall day. The kids cooperated well. We got some great shots of our family, Randy & I, the kids, Randy & the boys, Me & the girls, Randy's truck, All of us and the truck. I can't wait for them to be edited so I can see them.
This was the first time that our family had done something like this. Usually our "family photos" are either a photo for a church directory or whatever special at the local studio (JC Penney, Portrait Innovations, etc.) or else a snapshot. And since we don't even do that regularly, I'm really excited about these. I think our last "studio" photo was back when Micah was about 18 months old...or 6 months old...can't remember. We've been using snapshots since then.
This was the first time that our family had done something like this. Usually our "family photos" are either a photo for a church directory or whatever special at the local studio (JC Penney, Portrait Innovations, etc.) or else a snapshot. And since we don't even do that regularly, I'm really excited about these. I think our last "studio" photo was back when Micah was about 18 months old...or 6 months old...can't remember. We've been using snapshots since then.
November
It's November already. In my mind we still have several months until Christmas. In reality, it's weeks.
Today is "Orphan Sunday". A day set aside to recognize orphans (both true orphans and those children whose parents cannot care for them for various reasons) and what we can do to help. It is also "Pray for the Persecuted Church" (or something like that) Day where we remember those all over the world who cannot freely worship as Christians as they wish.
November is Adoption Awareness month. I'm a big proponent of adoption for children who need homes. I'm also an advocate for doing all we can to keep children intact in their families or origin when possible.
This month I'm excited to attend the "Joy for the Journey Retreat" with a couple of friends.
Since I last wrote, we suddenly had the opportunity to purchase another house so I probably won't be blogging to much between that and the coming holidays. We are both excited and overwhelmed. And hopefully I will tell you all about it at some point.
This week is Parent-Teacher Conferences at School so my kids have 2 half days of school. They also have off on Friday as the teachers have a conference to go to.
Today is "Orphan Sunday". A day set aside to recognize orphans (both true orphans and those children whose parents cannot care for them for various reasons) and what we can do to help. It is also "Pray for the Persecuted Church" (or something like that) Day where we remember those all over the world who cannot freely worship as Christians as they wish.
November is Adoption Awareness month. I'm a big proponent of adoption for children who need homes. I'm also an advocate for doing all we can to keep children intact in their families or origin when possible.
This month I'm excited to attend the "Joy for the Journey Retreat" with a couple of friends.
Since I last wrote, we suddenly had the opportunity to purchase another house so I probably won't be blogging to much between that and the coming holidays. We are both excited and overwhelmed. And hopefully I will tell you all about it at some point.
This week is Parent-Teacher Conferences at School so my kids have 2 half days of school. They also have off on Friday as the teachers have a conference to go to.
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