Birmingham

In an unrelated conversation a week or two ago, a friend of mine through out the idea that she was heading to Alabama to see Katie Davis speak if I would want to join her. My gut reaction was to say no since P can't take any time off work and I was certainly not carting the kiddos with me on that 8 hour trek. But when I realized she was speaking at a church service over a weekend when we had nothing planned, I quickly agreed before I could talk myself out of it. I'm not usually spontaneous, but I couldn't pass this up.

Over the past two years, I feel like God has been taking my view of Him and of what it means to follow him and flipping it completely upside down. Two of the sources He's used to transform my worldview are: 1 - The book, Radical, by David Platt and 2 - learning about Katie Davis and her ministry in Uganda. So when I found out Katie was speaking at the Church at Brook Hills in AL (David Platt's church), I felt like two of my favorite things were colliding and I wanted to be there to experience it.

The weekend was great. I loved the chance to get away for a day and half, even if most of it was spent in the car. The ride felt short with the great conversation of my friend, Linda, and a fabulous book on tape (Little Princes...A story about reuniting trafficked kids in Nepal with their families...so, so, so good. I highly recommend it). We met up with Linda's daughter, Lauren (a friend of mine from my years of leading YL in Mariemont) and her college roomate. We did typical girly things... met up at a mall for some shopping, enjoyed dinner out and went to see a movie. It was nice to just relax and enjoy girl time.

The church service was great. I loved hearing Katie's story. She reminds me so much of Mother Teresa. She's only 22, and yet she is loving with such an unselfish love and impacting the lives of the poorest of the poor. I loved hearing about her 14 daughters (yes... 14... she's adopted 14 sweet girls, and is raising them with such loving hearts for the poor around them). It was good to hear the hard times she's endured and how it's not always easy. The thing she said that hit me the most was how when we look at need in the world around us, it is overwhelming and we can feel hopeless. But instead of being overwhelmed by the multitude, we need to just love the one that God has placed before us. Love each person that crosses our path, since that is the person God wanted for us to interact with.

And I loved hearing David Platt speak. His heart for sharing Jesus is so evident in the few words I heard him speak. He challenged his church family to give radically of their time, lives, money... everything. He challenged the church that Katie's life shouldn't look so radical. We are all called to care for the widow, poor, orphaned, sick. Maybe we are not all called to Uganda, but it shouldn't look so radical for someone to give up everything to follow Jesus. It's what we are called to do. To be willing to give up everything for His sake. To love even when it hurts, to love even the unloveable, to love when it isn't comfortable.

It was a tiring weekend, but I am so glad that I went. Thanks to my sweet hubby for not even batting an eye when I asked what he thought about me going. He had a blast with the kids and I had a blast without them :) It was a win-win situation!

And just like that...

When we were at the park the other day, an older friend of A's told us how he had learned to ride a bike with no training wheels. He wanted A to watch as he demonstrated his new skill. Since he is completely visual, A studied his friend with a very intense gaze, then stated, "I think I can do that." He sat down on his friend's bike pushed off and just like that... we have a biker in our family! I had prepped myself for weeks of chasing behind his bike with an aching back, bandaging up scrapes from his many falls. But seems like we have breezed right by this milestone.

Now I know I'm his mom, so I'm a little biased, but I am pretty impressed that he picked it up so quickly... seriously, he just jumped on and took off! And he's only 4 1/2... I wasn't expecting this for a few more years. Way to go, A. We are so proud of you!!

Fall Firsts

With fall brings the start of school. A is loving his class this year... as he did last year. He comes home with all kinds of stories. Mostly about the girls. BUT he has made a new friend that is a boy! This year, he is the "puzzle expert" in his room. As we enter each day, there are usually a few boys working on puzzles. Without fail, they say from across the room, "Oh good, A's here. He can help us with this puzzle. Come on, A!" Makes my momma-bear heart burst with pride :)

He also had a chance to be leader already, so the class mascot, "Rascal," graced our house for a few days. A had to draw a picture about what Rascal did while he was at our house. I have a feeling "going to the dentist" isn't going to be the most exciting thing Rascal does this year, but it was super helpful having him there while A got his teeth pulled (a cavity gone BAD led to the front two teeth being removed... he was super brave, though, and loves to show off his big hole. You can see his new smile in the picture below).

This fall also brought the start of A's first soccer season. Oh, my, how that boy loves sports! He asks daily if it's time for soccer, even though he knows it's only on Fridays. Friday can not come fast enough for him! He's on the indigo team, and will tell you with out being asked that "I am awesome on defense." It's a super NOT competitive league, and it's so cute to see him out there playing. The first game, everytime he got the ball, he would look to me on the sideline and wave with a HUGE grin on his face! I LOVE the pure joy on his face when he plays. You can't tell from the pics below, but the smile doesn't leave his face the whole time!

Kelley's Island

The boys had a blast over Labor Day seeing family up at Kelley's Island. Their entire list of wishes came true in the short 2 1/2 day stay. Here's the only picture I got... as we were leaving! Wish I had more because they are truly so happy when we are there. They LOVE everything about that island. 

Nature Center

This summer, a new area opened up at the Nature Center. My mom and I took the boys to go check it out. What a cool concept! The idea behind it is that kids these days don't get outside enough. I think we all would agree with that. BUT the other things kids lack is the chance to explore, unguided by adults and unsupervised. (This is going to make me sound old...) Back when I was a kid, which wasn't THAT long ago, we would spend hours playing in the woods, building forts, climbing trees, creating and pretending without adults anywhere in site. We'd stay out past dark and play "Night Games" until we had worn ourselves out completely. With safety issues, kids don't get to just "explore". This area at the Nature Center is designed to allow kids to do just that. It's fenced in with just one exit, so there's no fear of kids getting lost. And there are stations set up along the path that are designed to promote creative play. A big pile or sticks just begging to be turned into a fort. A tunnel beckoning kids to venture through. A stream calling for bare feet to splash around in it. 

It was so fun! And they also have backpacks the kids can check out. Ours had binoculars, a compass, a journal/pen, a map of the park, and a magnifying glass. The kids loved seeing nature through these tools and felt like true explorers with their real gear. If you are in town, I highly recommend checking it out.

God is good... all the time

We bought a house! That's the big news in our house these days. It went on the market on a Thursday, we saw it Saturday morning, wrote up a contract Saturday night and had come to an agreement by Sunday afternoon. After two and a half years in our "holding pattern," this year has brought a new job and a new house! I am so, so, so excited. It is exactly what I wanted... literally the perfect house for us. Plus... plenty of room to add more kids to our family! Hallelujah! I made sure to warn P before we signed that if we get the house, he needs to be prepared that it will soon be full of kids :) 


But here's what I have found so interesting about this process. The number one response I get when I tell people about our perfect house and how everything worked out... "Wow. God is good." I have to say, I totally agree. God is good. BUT is He good only because things worked out? Through out the past  2 1/2 years as we waited and wondered what was going to happen with us... as we longed to adopt but had no space to put more kids... as we struggled financially and had to make a lot of cuts to make ends meet... through all of THAT, no one ever responded with a "Wow. God is good." 


God is good. He is good despite the circumstances in my life. His goodness is not dependent on the number of blessings He chooses to bestow upon me. A Matt Redman song that has continually been a lifesong for me states:

"Blessed be Your name
When the sun's shining down on me
When the world's 'all as it should be'
Blessed be Your name

Blessed be Your name
On the road marked with suffering
Though there's pain in the offering
Blessed be Your name

Every blessing You pour out
I'll turn back to praise
When the darkness closes in, Lord
Still I will say

Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your name
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Blessed be Your glorious name"

How I pray that that is my attitude. It's a choice to praise God when things are hard, when the puzzle pieces don't all fall into place on their own. It's a choice to call Him "Blessed" when life hurts, when my heart is breaking. That is something I have been learning during our "holding pattern". I pray that that is a choice I would continue to make. 

A Great Hypothesis

I have a sweet friend who is  my age but since she got pregnant earlier than planned, she is about 5 years ahead of me in life. I remember about 5 years she would update her blog a couple times a week with all of the funny things her kids would say and do.  Oh, how I anticipated her newest post because they almost always had me laughing out loud in front of my computer. The thought crossed my mind often, "I hope my kids are half that entertaining when they are that age."

We have hit "that" age. The boys have me laughing daily at the things that come out of their mouths.  Though the main purpose of this blog is to document the stories of my kids' childhoods, I hope you smile or chuckle or even laugh at the random things that come out of my kids' mouths.

Example:
On our way to Kelley's Island for a quick family vacation over Labor Day weekend, we were driving through farm land (it is the midwest... that's about all we have here!). In between the inevitable "Are we there yet?" questions, C throws out this random comment.

"Mommy. (pointing to a field that had been plowed over) That field used to have corn but now it does not have corn but it will grow again soon." Before I could respond, A pipes up from the next seat over, "C... That is a great hypothesis!"