Thursday, March 25, 2010

my babies!

I have amazing friends! I posted our family pictures that my friend Rachel took. Well, when she heard about Baby Girl, she volunteered to come take pictures of her as a ministry to her mother who didn't have any pictures of her. But the day she was coming her camera broke. But she didn't stop there! Instead, she found another photographer who was willing to give of her time and talents to take pictures of Baby Girl. They are amazing!!!! She is precious! I so wish I could put them up here, but I can't. But I can post the ones she took just snapping pictures as we went. She was so gracious to share those with me as well! She captured Toben, Ava and Callie in a beautiful way! I will always treasure the one of Ava working the puzzle as that is her favorite thing to do right now!!! And those shoes, well, that one will be hung in her room as an art work! :) Thank you Kate! If anyone in my area needs pictures taken, I know three wonderful and very talented ladies that I can refer you to!




















Monday, March 15, 2010

Why It's Worth It Now

I am TOTALLY motivated by Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace right now! Why? Is it because I love selling everything in my house that we are not using? Well, I do kind of get a kick our of making a buck or two on things that are just sitting in my closet, but that is not! Why am I so motivated? Well, in the words of Ramsey, "live like no one else now, so I can LIVE like no one else then!"

So here is what LIVING like no one else means to me:

  1. Being able bless my friends and family with gifts out of the blue
  2. Being able to give to a family that wants to adopt a child in need but is finding it hard to come up with all the adoption fees
  3. Being able to go grocery shopping and not feel guilty for buying food!
  4. Being able to buy all the extras for my girls' outfits because I can pay cash and have it in the budget!
  5. Being able to save for the future in a healthy way (not relying on that instead of God for provisions, but being wise with the resources God has blessed us)
  6. Being able to take family vacations and paying cash knowing that we won't be "reliving" the trip every time the credit card bill comes!
  7. Being able to go buy the decorations to finish out that one display for Easter or whatever because we have the cash because we are not sending a large portion of our pay check to those we owe!
  8. Being slave to No ONE except Jesus Christ!
  9. Shopping for the deal just because I love to find a bargain not because I HAVE to!

There are so many more, but those are just off the top of my head today!

Friday, March 12, 2010

The Fun!

What do I like most about having a baby girl? Getting to dress her up! And now Callie is old enough to help and get into it with me! So we have a blast....and have gotten in a bit of trouble with Daddy this month. Not sure what God was thinking giving me a baby girl and putting me on Dave Ramsey all in the same month....well, yes I do! He knew if not for Dave Ramsey this month, we would have another maxed out credit card with a new baby girl! :)
So this is how she went to the mall last weekend...decked out from HEAD


TO






TOE!


The Journey: Reflections


Whewh! Have just a few minutes to write some reflections here. Baby Girl is asleep in the swing for a minute and other two at home have breakfast and are busy at play for the time being!


Two weeks ago today our lives were changed forever! Whether we have Baby Girl forever or not, she will leave her footprint on our family!


The two weeks leading up to her being placed in our home are a blur. But as I have looked back on it, I have seen some major God moments that I totally underestimated at the time. One such moment was the Thursday morning before we went to court on Friday. During the whole process, I was so intent on making sure I didn't get in God's way. I didn't want to have any agenda in the situation. I wanted only to follow God and be His hands and feet. If that was to serve "Sally", then that is what I wanted to do. If that was to be momma to Baby Girl even for a brief time, then that is what I wanted to do.


In that, I had prayed differently than ever before. I just prayed for God to move and show me what to do. I cried out time and again to make it clear so that I would not get ahead, behind to the right or to the left of Him. It was probably one of the best places I have ever been with God...fully trusting, wholy leaning on and totally in love with! I just wanted to please Him and do His will - period!


Thursday morning when I was getting ready, God impressed on me that I should specifically pray that Baby Girl be placed in our home. It stopped me in my tracks. I began arguing with God (why do I do that?!). I began going down the list of why I hadn't already done that: what if she was with a wonderful foster family who was hoping to keep her and their hearts were ripped our if she were moved to us; what if that was not what our role was in this and I asked, it didn't happen, and I had to wrestle with unanswered prayer again; what if she did come to live with us and then goes back with Sally. God's answer? "I know, Trust Me! Obey Me!"


I didn't know why God was asking me to pray that Baby Girl would be placed with us, but I knew that not praying it right then would be outside of obedience, so I asked. The verse God has me in for 2010 is John 15, and I believe that God was reminding me of what He wants to teach me this year about His character and prayer! I was abiding in Him like I never have. Because of that, He was telling me exactly what to pray and that is when John 15:7 comes to life: "If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish and it will be done for you." I didn't really know if I "wished" for Baby Girl to be with us. But I did know that God was stirring in my heart to ask for it! He knew better than me how much I truly did long for her to be here.


Has the past two weeks been tough? Yes! Our lives were turned upside down in an instant as we have struggled to find a "new normal" as a house of seven with a new baby. We all know that a new baby puts a magnifine glass on any struggles in a marriage or the running of a home. So yes, it has been tough! But even in some of those moments that are tough, I stop to change a diaper. She looks at me and smiles her beautiful smile and all the "tough" melts away! She is so worth it! Even if it is only for a year! What greater joy is there than to pour my heart and soul into a little life for the time I have her! What greater gift to give her than to sing the love of Jesus over her as she goes to sleep each night and speak His blessings over her life as it gets its start! Will my heart be ripped out if she has to leave, probably. But for now, she is here. For now, she stops crying when I hold her. For now, she is my baby girl. For now, I will lay down my life for her and love her as if it will be forever!

Monday, March 1, 2010

The Journey: Guess what......

First let me apologize for not reporting Friday's results sooner! But hopefully you will understand! :) THANK YOU for all the prayers! I was very nervous (and I am NOT a nervous person) right before everyone started arriving.

Long story short, thanks to the amazing CPS lawyer and the lawyer for Baby Girl as well as Baby Girl's grandmother's diligence, we were awarded placement of Baby Girl Friday at about 3:30. She arrived that night about 8. We have been in heaven ever since! We can't post pictures of her face, and I tried to get a picture of her in the outfit from the last post, but I am not good at taking pictures with the heads cut off...well at least not when I *want* the head cut off! ;)

She is amazing! She is a wonderful baby! She is a blessing!

I have so much to share! So much that God has taught me through this journey already!

I hope to get some of it on here, but it may be a bit as I adjust to newborn world again as well as being mom to FIVE! Crazy!!!!

But I do want to say....if you have EVER thought of fostering? DON'T THINK ANYMORE....JUST DO IT!!!! Take the classes....you are not committed just because you take classes! Take them & see where God takes you!!! We need good Christian families taking care of our country's children in crisis!!!!