Adoption Update

I have a friend who has been in the process of adoption from Haiti for quite some time, and she recently mentioned that in their case the old adage applies, "No news is good news".  I agree that sometimes there really isn't much to share, and it just means that things are moving along but there really isn't anything new to report.  In our case we are just throwing some leads out and seeing what doors God opens.

One door that I didn't expect to walk through presented itself about a month ago, when there was a plea on Facebook for a family for a baby boy.  The mother didn't know she was pregnant until it was time to deliver, and she didn't have any desire to have a baby.  So the little guy has been hanging out at the hospital due to some special needs while he waits for a family to be chosen for him.  We sent in a pre-application, hesitantly.  I say hesitantly because of our our history with special needs.  We understand how difficult it can be, but we also know how wonderful it can be.  It's just tricky.  I heard the next day that they had received hundreds of inquiries and figured we wouldn't hear anything back.  Much to our surprise we were contacted a couple of days later and asked for our home study.  I sent it in and we didn't hear anything for a couple of weeks.  Then I figured we for sure must have been passed over, until we got another email with the baby's medical information.  They asked that after we had a chance to talk it over with a pediatrician that we let them know if we wanted to go to the next stage, a phone interview.  So, we talked with two pediatricians (I like to overdo things) and prayed some more, then let them know we would be open to the next step.  I have not heard anything back yet.

The other area we are pursuing is the foster care system.  We have inquired about a couple of children and are waiting to hear back.  There is a sweet brother and sister I am especially interested in hearing back on.  Although we have never fostered, we know this wouldn't be the easiest type of adoption.  But our hearts are open to what God wants to do in our family.

There is a Bible passage that was especially powerful this week, as we dealt with some other issues and I had a weary realization (as I was feeling overwhelmed with our current life struggles) that adoption isn't going to make our lives any easier . . .

"Do you not know?  Have you not heard?  The Lord is the everlasting God, the creator of the ends of the earth.  He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom.  He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak."

Isaiah 40: 28 - 29

Thank you, Jesus, for always showing me that Your strength is sufficient!

Canning Adventures/Back to School

 Many years ago, in high school, I was in our Future Homemakers of America club.  In fact, my junior year I was the president.  At the time I found that pretty amusing because I was quite sure I'd never actually BE a homemaker.

Well.

It turns out that God had other plans for me than me joining the CIA, which is what I wanted to do.  (Don't laugh, I'm serious.)  So now I have been a homemaker (and a happy one, I might add) for more than twelve years.  I always have had this list in my head of things that I need to do to be successful at this homemaking thing, and canning was one of them.  The problem was, I have been terrified of doing it by myself.  I have a lot of friends who have done it for years with their moms, but my mom's health hasn't ever been to the point where we could do this together.  About a year ago God brought a wonderful family into our lives; they live across the street.  He is a retired police chief and she is just finishing up homeschooling the second of their two sons.  I've been talking with her about wanting to learn to can, and last week she taught me how!

We still have some peaches waiting to be canned, but I've done about 48 quarts of peaches, pears, and spiced pears so far.

After my first afternoon of canning I told Ethan I finally get why people who live simpler lives are so happy.  There is something so peaceful about working to put away food for winter, while the big girls make homemade granola and the little two steal pieces of fruit away from my cutting board.  It's a good life.

In other news, we are entering our fifth week of school next week.  This year we have a 6th grader, 4th grader, 2nd grader, and Pre-Kindergartner.  Aren't they cute?
 

We started using Tapestry of Grace last year and love it.  We're learning about the Middle Ages this year.  That could be a post in itself, but I'll just say here that it has been a blast.  We found out we are related to Charlemagne, which is super cool.  The kids were posing here on their first day of co-op.  This year Spunky is taking Essay Writing and Cooking, Giggles is taking a class called Daughters of the King and Reader's Theater, Bubba is taking Art and Kids Crossfit, and Calico is taking Art and a combination class that has thinking skills, math, and literacy.  They are all happy with their classes.

Why I Cook From Scratch

Menu planning.  Those two words used to give me despair.  I cook three meals a day for six people.  Per month that is 90 meals being prepared.  The task of sitting down and planning out meals used to be my most hated chore.  We did it for a while, but that all changed last fall . . .

After much procrastinating, I decided to start cooking using the GAPS diet.  GAPS stands for Gut and Psychology Syndrome.  I really do believe that if we had been able to faithfully follow this diet it could have really helped Bubba (read "helped", not "cured"), but it was almost impossible to follow this strict diet.  I did learn a lot about cooking while attempting this.  We also experimented with the Specific Carbohydrate Diet, which is similar to GAPS but easier.  It was still very difficult.  And finally we spent some time cooking Paleo-style.  All of this experimentation in the kitchen got me used to making everything from scratch.  And when I say everything, I mean it.  Ketchup, taco seasoning, spaghetti sauce, dressings, etc.  Right now we have settled into a gluten-free diet for Bubba, with almost everything from scratch.  And can you believe the menu planning is no longer an issue?

I love it because we always have what we need in our pantry.  And because of the restrictions on some of the diets, we got used to eating the same meals over and over.  I have to admit that there was some mom guilt there, like my children are going to suffer as adults because I'm not giving them a different menu all the time.  But you know what?  It works!  The family is happy, I'm no longer stressed, and we're eating at home 99% of the time.  Win-win.  :)

                                         Inside our pantry

Determination!

When I was a little girl, I remember looking through my parents' bookshelves for new things to read.  From James Herriot to Laura Ingalls Wilder, there was always plenty of new material to get lost in.  I also remember their non-fiction books, and the one that was particularly tattered, "The Strong-Willed Child".  No, that book wasn't for me, it was for my brother.  I didn't really understand what him being strong-willed meant when I was a kid, but now that I'm raising one of my own do I ever get it!

Our youngest . . . she is something.  It's not unusual for Ethan and I to look at each other with eyebrows raised and mouth, "What the heck?"  when she is in the midst of a new explanation or adventure.  She is a pure delight and keeps us on our toes.  She is determined!  Whether it is to sing on the radio (like she did earlier this year) or learn to read (so she can figure out what adults are spelling when she's in the room), she will do it!

Last night I got to witness some of this when she wanted to go to the park.  I told her I had to finish vacuuming and sweeping, and then we could leave for the park.  She said, "Mom, I'll vacuum."  She has vacuumed a little bit before, but it's usually just in one spot.  I knew that we had a LOT of chip crumbs under and around our dining room table, and I never thought she would even notice it.  I was wrong.  Our little 30 lb. girl moved ALL the heavy chairs away from the table and somehow managed to vacuum up every crumb.  I kept expecting her to give up, but she wanted to go to the park!  She did the entire thing like it was no big deal.

We love our strong-willed sweetie and are eager to see what else she will do with her life!

Here We Go!

Last night was a very big night for our family.  For the last several months (and I mean SEVERAL) we have been working on an adoption home study.  Last night the big night when the social worker came out and interviewed us and looked at our home.  To say I was nervous would be an understatement.  The interview was actually really great.  She started by asking our kids questions about their basic information and how they felt about having a new child join the family.  It was so sweet to hear their thoughts.  The worker asked them what might be a downside to having a new sister or brother, and Giggles (who is now nine) answered that she might have to share her room.  She was asked if that made her feel differently about adopting, and she said "No, it's okay!  I don't mind!"  What a sweetie.  :)

The home inspection was so much easier than I had anticipated.  It was nice that we (and by we I mean Ethan) completely re-organized the garage this weekend, but she didn't even look in there.  Same thing for the inside of the fridge and showers, which I had scrubbed like a madwoman.  I'm not complaining, though; we have really appreciated having everything so clean and organized for the last few days!  

I had no idea how long it would take for the study to be approved.  I feel like I've been holding my breath for so long, just waiting to see if we will be able to do this.  When I asked last night, I just loved our social worker's response.  She said, "Oh, the approval on this will just take a couple of weeks, and it's not your family that is being approved, it's my report.  If I'd had any concerns about you I would have mentioned it by now."  What a great thing to hear!  I was so worried that we wouldn't be good enough.  But now that the we have gotten this far we will just be waiting to hear that we are certified to adopt!!  I can't wait.  

One last funny moment from last night.  Bubba (who is now seven) is really into sniffing (and occasionally licking) people, and he probably sniffed the social worker a half dozen times.  Luckily she has a daughter with special needs herself and she was very accommodating.  We just love his crazy quirks! 

Time Flies

Several years ago I kind of fell into keeping a blog.  It seemed like a good way to record family history, and I'm a spontaneous type of girl, so off I went.  As life picked up steam it became harder and harder to devote time to it.  I eventually decided it wasn't a priority, so I stopped blogging.  But earlier this week a dear friend asked me about our family blog.  I looked it up to make sure I was giving her the right address, and now I'm regretting that I let a year and a half pass without recording anything.  Life is still as busy as ever, but I'm going to try to record some memories here!

On Memorial Day we took the kids for a hike.  They all did really great, despite the girls' fear of seeing a rattlesnake or getting into poison ivy (which were both legitimate concerns).  We attempted to go up to this cave at one point, and I was climbing while supporting Calico.  My enthusiasm outweighed my abilities and before I knew it she and I were sliding down the side of the hill, with nothing to stop our fall.  Hello road rash!  I was so grateful to Spunky, who is the planner in our family.  She had packed a full first-aid kit and it came in handy.  Calico skinned both elbows but was so excited to be out on a hike that it barely bothered her.  She is becoming quite the brave four-year-old.

What Seeds Are You Sowing?

This morning was one of those mornings where I thought I was going to ship my girls off to public school if I heard them argue one more time.  They were just. not. getting. along.  We were taking a break from studies and tidying up when I heard another argument break out.  Frustrated, I told them to separate and then meet me in the kitchen in 10 minutes.

A while back we ordered a book that a friend had recommended called "For Instruction In Righteousness".  There are some beautiful ideas in this book for using God's word to guide our families.  I decided to work with my girls on one of the ideas from the book.  So .  . .

When the girls met me in the kitchen I handed them two containers and had them go get some fresh dirt.  When they came back in the house I had them sit down and told them we were going to plant some seeds.  I handed them a packet labeled "Strife and Contention" with pictures of angry flowers.  (Since I only spent a few minutes making the packets it wasn't like they were perfect, but they worked.)  On the back of the packet the description read "Guaranteed to produce large, stinky blooms.  Long-lasting quality.  Ingredients: selfishness, anger, spite".

The look on their faces was pretty cute.  Giggles was alarmed that they might actually grow stinky flowers.  I urged them to open up the packet and get to work.  (The packet contained grains of rice.)

After they had planted their "seeds" I held up another packet labeled "Peace and Joy".

"Now, girls . . . this is what kind of flowers I want you to grow.  The description on the back here says that these flowers will smell sweet and be pleasing to the eye.  The ingredients are selflessness and humility."

They just stared at me for a second.

"Okay, start growing these flowers!" I urged, pointing to the "sweet" flowers.

Giggles looked confused, "We can't grow that; we planted the wrong seeds!"

This naturally led to a great discussion about what kind of "seeds" we plant each day.  I swear I've talked with them about this kind of thing before but have never seen such interest.  Gotta love hands-on teaching!  Some verses we studied after this were Proverbs 16:28, Proverbs 20:3, and Proverbs 17:14.

I hope that this might be a help to some other parent, because it certainly made a difference to us today!  :)