Still Trying to Catch Up...

We finished up football season recently by claiming the GCAA State Championship on a cold, rainy Friday night. Go Eagles!

We're #1

my daughter, Kate and Natalie

our dedicated H2O Specialists for the team

Birthdays

We've had the privilege of celebrating 3 birthdays in the past two months, well actually 5 in both sides of our family, but only 3 that we were directly involved in celebrating :).

In October, my dh celebrated his 43rd...

out to eat lunch on his birthday

Little Boys

Remember the little boys we had in foster care back in July? We still keep in touch with their new family via facebook and when they come for court visits they come by the house and share pictures with us. And last week we had our first-ever video call  on Skype with them :-), and then last night they came to our house for supper and a visit! We all enjoyed the visit so much! The boys are growing and changing (as is to be expected, of course). They are so sweet, and so is their new mommy and daddy. I am so thrilled for them! To all my prayer warrior friends, please continue to keep them in your prayers as the adoption isn't final yet.

getting sugar from Lizzie

Looking Forward to Thanksgiving

I can't believe November is almost over and this is the first post I've written this whole month! I've been keeping up with family and friends on facebook, but that's about the extent of my computer time. We've been busy around here, but who hasn't?

Tomorrow morning we leave for a few days' visit with our family in a neighboring state. We're looking forward to the trip. I love spending Thanksgiving with our family! Visiting with extended family members that we only see once or twice a year, eating (too much) good food, watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade, watching football, the girls getting together for our annual Black Friday shopping trip -- I just look forward to all of it!

Family Trip to St. Augustine

Remember back in July, when my husband and I went to St. Augustine for our anniversary? Remember how I said we both loved that place so much that we felt like we simply must take our kids there some time? Well, last Thursday and Friday Kate was out of school, and even though Ryan was not (his college holidays don't really match up with Kate's school holidays, except for Thanksgiving and Christmas) we decided to go for a couple of days.

We had a really fun time. Our plans didn't really work out like we originally planned (sometimes they don't), but we still had a great time together. I wish Ryan could have been with us. Maybe we'll go back again another time :)

Here are some pictures from our trip:

More Fall Pictures

a crisp 65 degree fall morning

Butterflies and Fall

The weather here has definitely begun to feel fall-ish. The temperature this week has been just perfect for getting outside. We have such hot summers here, that unless you have a pool, you pretty much stay indoors with air conditioning. So this week has been a nice respite from the hot temps.

Today we were able to enjoy one of my favorite pastimes... nature study. I think that has to be one of my favorite things about homeschooling. I love just being able to take as much time as we want to enjoy God's marvelous creation, especially on days like today! Today we chose to watch the butterflies. After lunch we spent some time just watching them fluttering around the yard. I have Lantana planted in flower beds in my front and back yards, and this flowering plant is a haven for the butterflies. Will brought out his net and decided to capture one to study up close.

Getting Ready for a Wedding

My friend's daughter is getting married this Saturday and I am the wedding director. This is my first time directing a wedding :O. We've been really busy today, setting up tables and decorating the fellowship hall for the reception. The bride's family is doing most everything themselves, with the help of friends, as opposed to hiring out everything. I am honored to be included in the planning and the implementation of all the details! I decided to take today and tomorrow off school so I can devote the full day to helping them.

The bride prefers a simple, yet very tasteful style and she is decorating with lots of live plants and pots of mums wrapped in white tulle. Simply gorgeous! Everything is coming together nicely, and it is going to be really beautiful.

This is actually the third wedding in which I've been privileged to help with all the decorating, etc. I have learned much, so hopefully by the time my Kate gets married (many years from now, as she is only 15) I will have mastered the art of wedding construction right down to the tiniest of details!

Maybe I will have some pictures to post tomorrow.

A Love Story

On this day 21 years ago, I took his name and I gave him my heart. Sometimes it seems like only yesterday that I walked down the aisle, took his hand and said "I do." And sometimes it seems like it's been forever!

It is a small, simple ceremony held in the chapel. 

Music from the piano is softly drifting through the

sanctuary, marking the time. She stands at the entrance,
poised on the threshold between two worlds.

Birthdays and Wisdom

Another year older, another year wiser? Hmm... Maybe so. I turned 42 on August 26th. I've never really had a fear of growing older. In fact, I look forward to growing old with my husband. You know -- gray hair and rocking chairs kind of old. I don't think he feels the same way though. Not about growing old along with me, just growing old in general :).

My birthday fell on a Friday this year. Which means we spent my special day traveling to north Georgia to watch our Appling Christian Academy Eagles play football. It's a good thing I love watching football! We don't have a cheer squad this year. Only four girls showed an interest in cheering and the cheer coach decided that four was not enough to have a proper squad. So instead of standing on the sidelines, cheering the boys on, this year Kate stands on the sidelines serving the boys as "water girl."

Maybe He Should've Just Turned Around...

I wrote about both Kate and Will's first day back to school, so I thought I would share about Ryan's first day back to college.

His first day of classes was August 22nd, a Monday. So he decided to go back to Statesboro on the preceding Thursday, so as to have a couple of days to get everything in order. His apartment complex decided to implement a parking permit policy over the summer. They seem to be having trouble with what you might call "riff-raff" there, you know, break-ins and thievery, drug deals, and some other unsavory goings-on that I won't mention specifically. So they are making some changes to try and "clean up" the place. They would like to be a college students only apartment complex.

So, anyway...

Journey Toward Learning

Yesterday was Will's first day of school. I waited a week after Kate started back before starting with him. This year I wanted to give myself a little time to adjust slowly, rather than starting them back at the same time like I did last year. The extra week helped some. I know it wouldn't be a big deal if they were both at home, but getting back into the routine of getting Kate off to school needs some getting used to around here.

2011-2012 School Year

Kate started school on Monday, August 8th. She is in 10th grade this year! She has been learning to drive this summer, and has been working on the Joshua Law requirements. I can't believe she will be 16 in February! My little girl is not so little any more. She still attends ACA, and I still tell her (often) that she can always come back home if she wants to. She always tells me, with a smile in her voice, that she really loves it at this small Christian school. They have 2 new students in her grade this year, for a total of 18 in the sophomore class. This is the biggest class yet at ACA!

Here is her class schedule:

Closing Out Summer

Wow! Where did the summer go? I know it is actually still summer, but for us, summer vacation has come to an end :(

Here's a recap of our summer in pictures ~ in no particular order :)

Our Weekend Trip

DH and I took a little road trip this past weekend. We needed some time for just the two of us. We RARELY (meaning almost never!) go anywhere without our kids. Seriously, in our 21 years of marriage I can count on one hand the number of times we've gone away without them. So DH booked this early anniversary trip over a month ago.

We went to St. Augustine, FL... the oldest city in the US. We only stayed for the weekend. DH's plans involved sight-seeing on Friday, and relaxing at the resort on Saturday before returning home on Sunday. But apparently he forgot about what a history buff I am! There was no way to experience everything in one day! So... the relaxing around the resort on Saturday? Yeah, that kind of didn't happen. We spent two whole days walking all around historic Old Town, St. Augustine (we did ride the trolley some of the time) learning about lots of history that you never read in your textbook education at school. And even two days wasn't enough time to see it all. I told dh that we definitely have to plan a vacation here now so the kids can experience all that we did!

Learning Places

My emotions are raw, and riding high right now... We didn't keep the babies. We chose to allow another, younger, child-less couple to take them into their foster home. It was harder than I thought it would be. Not foster-parenting. But parenting babies -- a 2 year old and a 9 month old. We had them for only 13 days and I was utterly worn out. Exhausted. Completely spent. And I had help!

What made me think I could do this? Starting over with a baby who doesn't sleep through the night. At my age -- I'll be 42 next month. When we completed our training and certification to become adoptive parents, we specified the age range of the children we felt like we could take into our home. And that range did not span the infant-toddler age group. But we received a call from our RD explaining that these babies needed a foster home in our county. She made it clear that she realized we didn't really want to foster-parent, and that these children were not in our preferred age range and we did not have to take them. But knowing how eagerly we've been waiting to adopt, would we be interested in fostering them, with the probability that they would be free for adoption within a few months?

Adoption Update, (Pt. 5)

We get to bring home our newest treasures tomorrow afternoon...

Those words evoke so many emotions. There are so many thoughts racing through my mind as I stare at this screen, trying to compose those thoughts.

I can't sleep. I went to bed at 10:30, but sleep has eluded me. My mind can't seem to slow down long enough to allow my body the rest it needs. We've been in a whirlwind here at my house for the past two days. Trying to get everything ready, to bring them into their forever home.

Beach Vacation and Father's Day

~ Beach Vacation ~

This year we vacationed in Miami, Florida ~ actually Surfside Beach, one of Miami's beaches.

This and That and Mother's Day

If you recall, I found out recently that I have a heart murmur. And just to be on the safe side my doctor wanted me to see a cardiologist and have some further testing. So I had an appointment last week and had an echo-cardiogram performed. Next week I have an appointment with the cardiologist to discuss the results.

So my oldest son is out of college for the summer, and is working as a summer intern at the power plant where my husband works. He just finished his first week of work. Not really work, per se, training this week. I overheard my youngest son asking him if he was glad to be out on summer break. His reply made me smile. It might be summer but it's not a break for me! I think he'll feel pleasantly compensated for the loss of his "summer break" when he receives his first paycheck.

Baby Dove

Kate, my sensitive child with a big heart for God's creatures, found a baby dove in a friend's yard this week, and decided it needed to be rescued. Of course I told her that just because it was on the ground did not mean that it needed to be rescued by humans. But this one was in danger of being eaten by the friend's dogs. Kate tried to put it in a nearby bush, but it couldn't grasp the limbs with its feet and hold on, so it fell to the ground again. She couldn't find a nest anywhere, so she asked if she could bring it home and take care of it. Me being the softy that I am, said yes.

Easter

Easter... What does this holiday mean to you? What traditions do you associate with this day?

When I was a little girl Easter meant a basket filled with chocolates and treats. A new dress, sometimes with a little bonnet. Sometimes with a little purse and gloves. It meant decorating eggs, and finding them, hidden in the yard. It meant getting together with family and sharing a special meal.

The Jelly Bean Flowers... this is a tradition that my children and I share at Easter. We make this simple flower arrangement and place it on our kitchen table.

Tornadoes and Torn Lives

Our spring break is coming to a close. Will went to the beach with a friend's family for a few days. Kate and I were able to accompany Mike on a business trip to Birmingham, Alabama on Monday and Tuesday. Ryan was at college, as his spring break was a few weeks ago.

But my heart is heavy as I ponder the destruction, the devastation, the loss of lives from the day of twisters through the state of Alabama.

This I Know

Just thinking back over the past months of the sickness and surgeries and suffering that seem to have kept coming, one on top of another, we've dealt with in this house...  My God has been gracious. Gracious enough to not allow me to dwell on it, to not linger over it. Gracious enough to sustain me through all of it.