Soccer Season

We're blessed that the base offers a decent soccer program for kids ages, 4-9. That left Caleb as too much of an old-timer to play, but Gabe, Lily and Seth are playing, Lily and Seth for the first time. There's something about little kids in baggy soccer shorts, long socks to the knees, and cleats that radiates cuteness.

Since there are a few too many miles between most of your houses and mine, and you probably won't make it to any of the kids' games, here are some video snipits so that you can cheer from the other side of the computer screen. These first four show Gabe in action...or inaction. Whichever. :o) He's on the gray team, "The Sharks," number six.

*I apologize for the poor quality video.











And on the Navy blue team, ironically also, "The Sharks," we have Seth, number one, and Lily, number ten.








Today, Lily ran down the field, dodged many obstacles, and scored a goal! The funny thing is, it was such a little deal to her that she didn't even remember after the game that she scored! She was more impressed with a big save she made as a goalie. Seth also scored a goal, but he was so excited about all his defensive blocks and goalie saves. Of course, none of this is captured on any of the clips above. Gabe does a great job playing defense, but he doesn't like it as much as playing goalie, which he isn't particularly great at, which he readily admits.

We're very proud of our little soccer players, for their good sportsmanship--Seth did wiggle his bootie at one of the opponents after he blocked a shot...we discussed why that's not okay after the game--for their discipline and for their endurance--a couple of the games and practices have been played in 100+ heat index weather.

Go Sharks, all of 'em!

Five years ago...

*God surprised me with a brand new, red-headed, warrior-spirited, gentle-hearted son.

*God blessed me with wonderful home birth. It was a beautiful autumn day, and I was surrounded by my favorite people in my home. It was perfect.

*I became a mom of three sons! Three!!! I felt like I'd just won the jackpot on a slot machine! Three sons in a row!

Today, he left babyhood behind forever. Five.

Here are some pictures of his journey so far:

Labor day. I got to meet Seth face to face about two hours after this pictures was taken.



First snuggles with daddy.



Here I'm getting my first real good look at him. I'm in love.



Caleb and Gabe meet their new brother just moments after he was born.



Three days old.


A week old. This is my view of him in my sling, where he spent about the entire first year of his life!



My little pumpkin.



One month old. I caught a cute little sleepy smile.



Two months old. A gift from above.




First Christmas with three boys!




One year old today!




Two!






Almost three.




I'm four years old!




And today:



His wish before he blew out his candles: "I wish to be a worker when I grow up."



Today is all about him.




Happy birthday, big guy. I'll never, ever, ever, ever, EVER stop loving you. (These sweet words Seth exclaims to me almost every day.) Sigh. I'm the most blessed momma ever.

What I Did On My Summer Vacation

Okay, so this update is long overdue.

June:

Beach Days











Swim lessons







July:

Independence Day



We adventured on a three-week vacation from Texas to Missouri to Indiana to Ohio...back to Texas. We survived. Thrived. And I have pictures to prove it.

Oh, and Rob had to work, so the four kids, one dog and one mom drove up without him. He was to fly up and meet us in IN the second week. I feel like I accomplished something significant in simply getting us all there in one piece. And...the first leg of the trip was without A/C. It was 107 in Austin when we drove through, if that gives you any indication of the heat factor. But, good news was in the works.

First stop, Denton, TX to crash on my sister-in-law Stacey's house. Great things happened here. 1.) I saw my awesome nephews Bill and Kelly. They are great. 2.) I got to meet Stacey's kind and handsome boyfriend, Sean. 3.) Kind and handsome boyfriend finished fixing the A/C on our van, making the remaining hours of July travel far more enjoyable.

Here's a picture of Stacey and Sean:



Next stop, Halfway, MO, my place of birth, and where my parents, paternal grandparents, and a few aunts and uncles and cousins live. My mom had to work the evening we were to arrive, so we just stopped at her restaurant, grabbed dinner there with my dad, and visited while she finished up her shift.

Isn't she the cutest waitress?




Then we visited with my parent for three days. We relaxed, played, visited. Great times were had by all.












My favorite picture of my dad:



It was hard to say good-bye to them. I have been gifted with very supportive and loving parents. They are a great blessing to us.

Next stop 12 hours later: Etna Green, IN.

I saw siblings, nieces and nephews, friends, more friends, and my precious maternal grandparents.












After Rob's conference, we headed out to Ohio to visit with Rob's family. Lot's of R & R was had by all. Just what we needed.











Our last stop in OH was to good ol' Ludlow Falls, where Rob went to Teen Camp as a youngster and where he and I counseled as older youngsters. We thought the first night of camp meeting was to take place on our last night in OH, but alas, we were a day early. We explored the creek instead.



So, I may have overwhelmed you with pictures. Not much different from old vacation slides, but believe me when I say that I spared you, because I still have HUNDREDS more. Just wanted to give you the photo-synopsis and not the entire manuscript. Maybe you can come on over for dessert and coffee sometime and I'll show you the rest!

And though we had a wonderful time, we were so happy to be back home. For the first time in eight months, Texas really felt like home.

August

Besides trying to get caught up from being gone for three weeks, the highlight of August was Caleb's birthday...but he deserves a post all to himself, so I'll write that at another time.

Threadspinner

Long-ago friends of ours from college have an awesome band called Threadspinner. Jon and Sarah Ziebarth moved from Indiana to California several years ago (like ten, maybe?) so Jon, who is now a brilliant research scientist, could attend grad school at Stanford. Jon used to play in a band called Fresh Cod, and they practiced in our musty basement in South Bend. Good times. Sarah is a beautiful vocalist.

They just released their first video "Night Chorus" this last week. I love it! It's sweet and artsy and beautiful. I know you'll enjoy it, too. Check them out!

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I-FAQ's (In-Frequently Asked Questions)

As mom to many, I must face an invariable list of questions every day. Several times a day. Some examples include:

Mom, can I have candy?
Mom, can I watch a show?
Mom, can I have a snack?
Mom, how many more minutes until lunch?
Mom, what are you making for lunch?
Mom, is this lunch or dinner?
Mom, can I have a snack?
Mom, how many more minutes until dinner?
Mom, what are you making for dinner?
Honey, how many more minutes until dinner?
Honey, what are you making for dinner?
Mom, can I have a snack?

Sigh. There does seem to be some paranoia in my home about food.

People! I feed you. Several times a day. I never forget. Don't worry!

Anyway, this week, I decided not to focus on the countless questions that may very well do me in, and instead highlight the more unusual questions that came my way, some of which hurt my brain.

Here's a sampling:

Rob: Are you wearing a girdle? (His way of telling me I looked svelt, I guess.)

Seth: Does God have a belly button?

Lily, to me as Rob was leaving in his dress blues to officiate a wedding: Is Daddy getting married?

Lily: Does Jesus stay up all day AND all night?

Caleb: Did Jesus use his own powers or God's powers? (Think about that one...)

Caleb: Do you think that I'll discover a secret power I never knew I had? I know it's not flying or super strength.

Caleb: Can I have an R2D2 cake for my birthday?

Rob: Is our ceiling leaking? (Why, yes it was.)

Gabriel: How does a seed turn into a baby, and how did it get in your belly anyway? (After several rounds of, "Go ask your father," and "Go ask your mother," Gabe decided to go to ask.com, at which point I officially intervened and forbade him from asking that question on any web browser.

Seth, loudly, as a young man with beautiful, long black hair helped us as Walmart: Mom, is that a boy or a girl?

Okay, off to get an ibuprofen.

A Peek Into Our Week of VBS

We just finished up Vacation Bible School at the base chapel. We had a great time and I know the kids' faith was renewed and built up. As well as my own. A friend of mine put together a slide show for which her two awesome boys took all the pictures. You can catch glimpses of all of us doing our VBS thing.

Seth is wearing a ball cap in most of his pictures and may be harder to spot, especially if you're looking for his tuft of orange hair.

Click here for VBS slide show

I hope this works...

My World Is a Backstage

One day of work for my husband...four costume changes.



He had to rush from one costume to the next before the scene changes.






I felt such a rush of adrenaline when he raced out the door, onto the stage. We made it just in time. And he didn't miss any lines.





My work as a stage hand was done. For the day.

Now I have to go pick up his next costume from the Tailor Shoppe for tonight's show.

*I only have pictures of three of his costumes. The first one was his PT gear, and, well, no one wants post-workout pictures posted on the internet. And the first costume, his khakis, he actually had to wear that two different ways with two different hats and two different pairs of shoes. Seriously.

Neglect

I'm sorry, lonely and neglected blog. You wait so patiently for me to come to you when I finish with Facebook. Always hopeful. You understand that it takes more effort to write a full thought than to come up with a shorty, like "is weekending." You are painfully aware of your lack of immediate feedback and community when competing with such a vast networking site. You know that I have over 200 friends there, and here...maybe four. Yet here you sit with a sigh, hoping that I'll get bored and return to you. Such a faithful little blog you are.

I still like you.

Big Plans

You may never know how a simple word of encouragement can blossom in a child's heart.

Lily proudly proclaimed to Rob today: I'm going to be a doctor when I grow up, because Mom says I have steady hands.

May I never let an encouraging or hopeful thought go unsaid.

Dream away, baby girl. I got your back.

Catching Up...With Pictures

I'm behind. Again. We've been sick with bronchitis, pneumonia, allergies, sinusitis.

We've



My wild scientists at Wild Science Week at the Corpus Christi Science and History Museum.


Caleb excavating a "dinosaur."


Archaeologists use dental tools for precision. We started out that way, but after an hour of scraping away plaster of paris with a tooth pick, we asked for a hammer.



My kids, along with two of my fellow homeschooling moms' kids, enjoyed an impromptu rock lesson.



Caleb was chosen to participate in the Museum's annual Wild Science Week Turtle Race. He held a mealworm in front of the turtle, named Henry, and urged him to victory.



We were all thrilled when Henry won, especially Henry who happily devoured his breakfast, which he worked hard for.




A friend invited us to her condo complex which has a pool in the back yard. The first of many spring/summer swims.



We were all at the doctor's office 4 times in 10 days. We tried to keep our good humor, especially when at this one, we had to wait in the examining room for an hour before the doctor came back from his lunch break smelling like tacos and peppermint gum.



When Rob finally got back from San Diego, we went out to eat and we all shared this humongous, glorious, decadent ice-cream/chocolate chip cookie/mocha syrup treat. Gabe ate as fast as possible and was not fun to share with. Can you see the wild, sugar-crazed look in his eyes?

Still Gotcha, Lily

I know this post is long overdue, but here it is. Just a little blush at being late.

February is a big month for us around here. Nah, it has nothing to do with Valentine's Day, but everything to do with love.

On February 13, we celebrated Lily's adoption three years ago. Three years! That means that we first saw her picture and fell in love with a chubby toddler across the world nearly four years ago! That was such a defining time of our lives. We still talk about it and relive the experience in our hearts and share excitedly with others about this miracle of adoption, the miracle that is Lily.

You can read about her adoption here. But that's only the travel journal, and it doesn't fully chronicle the journey our hearts took, are still taking.

No one who meets Lily leaves untouched. She is a remarkable child with a strong yet gentle heart; fiercely independent, yet trusting; longs to be nurtured, yet quick to nurture those around her. I love this child with my whole heart.

We celebrated Lily's adoption with a trip to a Chinese restaurant, new to us. Bamboo Gardens. Very yummy, but much to the kids' dismay, not a buffet. "I like it when I can pick out my own food," Gabe sighed. But the food was superb. Rob and I may have to go back sans children.

Then we presented Lily with some gifts we had picked out for her. A new silk dress and hair tie purchased three years ago in China. (I only have one left! We'll just have to go back and get some more for subsequent Gotcha Days!) A pearl bracelet with real freshwater pearls from China. A renewed promise to love and cherish this child was gifted to us forever and ever.




My prayer for our sweet daughter:

Lord, thank-you for bringing Lily to our family. Only you could graft her into our family so beautifully, the same way that you graft us, your adopted children, into your family. If I love her this much, I can only imagine how much you love me. Wow. Please keep her safe. Protect her heart from disappointment, doubt and despair. Remove from her heart any loneliness or empty longing. May she always feel the love of her family and extended family. And I pray that she will especially feel the sweet embrace of your love for her. I pray that she will grow up knowing and trusting Jesus and that she will find him to be wholly satisfying. Use her life Lord and reveal to her your purpose for her life. And, Father, please be very near to the millions of children around the world who do not know the love of a family. Dear God, make yourself known them as their Father, and raise up people who will seek them out and bring them into loving homes. In precious name of Jesus, Amen.

Happy Gotcha Day, Baby.

All About Gabriel

E I G H T

I can barely believe it.

Where did those years fly off to? When we brought him home from the hospital, a week after his precarious birth--you can read about it here--he changed the dynamics of our entire family. Caleb became a brother. We became parents of multiple children. Going from one child--who is the center of both parents' attention and devotion--to two children was a big leap, one that was as miraculous as it was difficult. We wouldn't go back for anything in the world!

Quick Gabe trivia: We didn't have a name picked out for him until he was several hours old. He was this close to being named Carter Robert, but he just didn't look like a Carter.

Today we celebrate Gabe and thank God for his precious life.

We've always lived just far enough away from family that it had been difficult to have family parties every year for everybody's birthdays. So even though we sure missed all the aunts and uncles and cousins and grandparents, we had a fun time with a few close friends. God has been SO GOOD to provide good friends for our children and friends for Rob and me as well.

Gabe has the most sensitive, precious heart. But he is also all boy. He wrote a joke today, and I'll risk posterity by sharing it with you here:

"Where does an action figure go potty? Give up? A Toy-let."

The funniest part of the joke: he was inspired while taking too long in the bathroom, avoiding his math. Some of the greatest epiphanies in our family have come while spending time on the throne. That's what happens when you live with a houseful of boys.

When he shared it with Caleb, he told him, "Usually Mom just pretends to laugh at my jokes, but this one really made her laugh." That made me chuckle at his perception and start honesty, but I also felt bad. I vowed internally to really laugh at more of his jokes.

Anyway here are some birthday party pics:






*By the way, the big skid marks on Gabe's head--he ran full speed down the sidewalk and tripped. Poor kid!

A Little Family Outting On President's Day

*Note: I'm very late in posting this, even though I started writing it last month. Just to avoid any confusion.

Rob got today off from work! Woo Hoo! As a chaplain, he doesn't get the same kind of weekend days off as most, and many times, we find him working lots of days in a row without a full day of respite. Still, after our very difficult year where he was working four jobs at one time--and still not making ends meet--we feel so very blessed to have whittled it down to one good job. Thank-you, Lord.

So, we decided to take the family to the USS Lexington, a carrier that is no longer operational and has been converted into a museum. We all loved it. Our intention was to go to the Texas State Aquarium, which is only blocks away from the Lexington, but when we parked the van, and the kids saw the Lexington up close, a 3-to-1 vote changed our plans. And the one nay-sayer had a quick change of heart once we made our way up the massive ramp to the ship's entrance.


The day was WINDY and cold.


We climbed up lots of narrow and steep stairways/ladders as we explored.


On the flight deck, as we tried to keep from being blown overboard by the vicious gusts, we found a cool "Blue Angel." The Blue Angels are coming down here in April for an air show. We can't wait.



The kids and Rob are standing in front of a case of ships flags while Rob explains to the kids how each flag represents a different letter of the alphabet or a different message.


Exploring the men's berths. The sailor's each had a bed, and a small drawer and locker to keep their personal items in. Pack light!



This plane, "The Dauntless" crashed into Lake Michigan and was recently exhumed. It is now being restored on the Lexington.



Seth explores the inside of a missile. You know. It's Seth .



A beautiful stained glass display near the chapel.

Rob may one day be assigned to a carrier. That is not my hope, but if that is where God places him, I'm glad the kids had a chance to see this with him now. It's quite a bit different now that it is a museum, but it gives us an idea.

One Museum Down...Four to Go.

February is museum month here at Fasnacht Academy.

Rob's Dad and step-mom sent the kids some Christmas money...a while ago, considering that it's February...and instead of getting the kids each more toys that they didn't need, we decided that we would look for a membership of sorts for them. We didn't know the area well enough to make a good choice, so we've been hanging on as we research.

One of the memberships that we considered was to the Corpus Christi Botanical Gardens. We were just there, remember? But we considered the number of months here in South Texas where it is unbearable to play outside in the middle of the day, so we ruled it out, even though we greatly enjoyed our visit and will go back.

But, while we were there, we saw this sign:



Oh, we're all about free.

Yesterday, we hit the Museum of Science and History. Loved it. And Seth only broke one display, so it was a good day. We decided to get our yearly membership there. Thanks, Papaw Bob and Grandma Carol!

We parked at the wrong end of the building, but we were so glad we did, because we would have missed this awesome feature: The Watergarden. The kids were all ready to dive in.

It was one of our favorite spots, a feast for the senses as our ears pounded with the sounds of cascading waterfalls, the air was moist and smelled fresh and clean, and of course it was beautiful to behold.

Right inside is a play/learning center. We could have spent all day there, and you can bet that we'll use our membership to come back and play/learn.

Always looking for adventure and drama!

We found lots to do, appropriate and fun for all the kids' developmental ages. I loved watching them glow with the excitement of discovery.

They've got the world at their fingertips. Surely they do.

Another favorite exhibit of the museum featured two replicas of the Pinta and Santa Maria ships, sailed by Spain's infamous adventurer Christopher Columbus. Here's what the museum website says about it:

The ships are reproductions built by Spain to commemorate the 500th anniversary of Christopher Columbus' voyages to the New World. They took five years to build and cost $6.5 million. The three ships embarked on a tour of the Mediterranean and Atlantic ports of Europe in 1990 and 1991. After a successful tour of 18 United States ports, they arrived at their permanent home in Corpus Christi in 1993. The Pinta and Santa Maria are located at the Corpus Christi Museum of Science and History. There are no guided tours of the Nina, moored at the Corpus Christi Marina, but can be viewed from the dock.

You can see one of them there in the background, big and black.

Cast of characters: Diego (a little boatswain?), Queen Isabella, King Ferdinand, and Christopher Columbus himself.

And right off the deck of the Pinta, we could look across the bay and see the USS Lexington, large and stately, a stark contrast to Columbus' wooden sailing ships.

Next up for our field trip pleasure, we have, in no particular order, the art museum, the Texas State Aquarium, the Asian Culture Museum and a tour of the USS Lexington we just saw.

February, may be the shortest month of the year, but we're going to cram in as much art, history, science, culture, botany, oceanography, EXPERIENCE as we can! So Field Trip Fridays have just evolved into Field Trip February.

I love homeschooling.

Shoot For 2, Put It Through!

Caleb and Gabe are playing basketball this winter with the Morale, Welfare & Recreation (MWR) department and the youth activities center. They were desperate for coaches, so despite our busy schedule, Rob was blessed to be able to coach their team. They love having Dad as coach (on most days!). I'm just happy that they are both on the same team so we only have to go to one game on Saturdays and one practice throughout the week!

They are starting to understand some of the fundamentals of the game, and they both enjoy it greatly. Gabriel is so, so excited whenever anybody of his team scores, just as excited as if he himself shot the winning basket. What an encourager! I'd want him on my team just for that! And Caleb has a smile on his face the ENTIRE game! He loves being part of the action, even if he doesn't get that much ball time.

Neither of them are the superstars of the team. And we're all okay with that. They are learning the meaning of teamwork and following instructions and being aware of the players around them. There's a lot of coordination that goes into playing basketball, and I can already see improvements in that area, too!







I'm having a hard time getting any good action shots. It's a combination of poor lighting and a camera that doesn't handle both poor lighting and action. Maybe I'll try to get some video next Saturday. So far, blogger doesn't like the format in which my camera video tapes, so I'm working out the kinks on that one.

Anyway, I love cheering my little stars from the sidelines. Baseball starts in a few months, and Gabe wants to play. Caleb is still undecided.

Another Field Trip Friday

This time we visitied the Corpus Christi Botanical Gardens and Nature Center.

Loved it!

We met our new friends, who also homeschool, for an afternoon surrounded by God's beautiful handiwork, carefully cultivated into a delightful discovery of gardens and trails and observatories and habitats.

First things first: picnic lunch.




One of my favorite from the rose garden. Gorgeous! And so fragrant.



The kids brought their journals, and I encouraged them to sketch or write about their discoveries. They stopped often to observe and sketch.



The rose garden also inspired Gabe, and he took a moment to capture some of it's beauty.




All of the kiddos, forced into a group pose by two camera-toting moms. This stone seat was covered with a colorful tile mosaic.



Caleb and Seth peering over a two-story lookout tower. They were disappointed that Gator Lake had no 'gators. (And with the current Texas drought, not much lake either.)



It is always such a joy to watch my children learn and make new discoveries.



One of my favorite spots was the Arid Garden, a little corner with a wide variety of cacti and desert foiliage poking out of the hard soil. This garden felt like Texas!




God is so good to add such color and beauty to even the most desolate of places. We can't wait until springtime when blooms and blossoms will spring out from what we thought was dry and dead.



A desert congo line?



And this was my favorite picture of the day. Isn't she just lovely, my sweet Lily flower, bursting from among the rose bushes?

Whispers

I woke up this morning with a sweet, chubby four-year in the crook of my arm. His fingers caressed my arm as he whispered in my ear:

"Jesus called them...and immediately they followed him."

Pause.

Then, "Jesus said, 'I am the resurrection and the life.'"

Then he repeated both verses again.

His memory verses from the past couple of weeks at AWANA Bible Club.

Sweet. In its purest, most virtuous form.



"In the morning, O Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation" Psalm 5:3

Happy Chinese New Year!

We celebrated:

With decorations. (I bought this flashy silk lantern at a shop on Shamian Island in Guangzhou, trying to spend the last of our yuan before leaving the following day.)


With little red envelopes the kids and I made. I printed out a host of Chinese characters, and the kids each picked out their favorite one to put on their own envelope. Caleb picked "Fun," Gabe picked "Fire," Lily picked "Love," and Seth picked "Happy." They all wanted Rob to have "Father" and me to have "Mother." Inside each envelope I tucked a few coins and placed them all alongside their dinner plates, in addition to a special candy treat.


With a big meal, mostly Chinese fare, with American twists: Jasmine rice, General Zso's Chicken, egg rolls, steamed dumplings, fried dumplings, and ginger and garlic green beans. Yum!


Chopsticks are a must! Of course, by the end of the meal, each of the kids had requested a spoon and/or fork. At least they got a little practice.


Our Chinese New Year Prayer for you: May God bless you with a long life, good health, great love, and financial blessings to spare this coming year, in Jesus' name!

Field Trip Friday

First stop: the library. . .for a book on the shells of coastal south Texas.



Because this is what the beach on the base looks like.



A few extra finds, like beached jelly fish and hermit crabs, add delight to the day.



And what would an afternoon at the "shell beach" be without a Black Hawk fly-by? (Seriously, these things are amazing!)


Sorry the light is really harsh on this one, but I wanted a group shot with before we left.


Who knows where next Friday will take us?

How did you spend your MLK Jr. Day?

A Backwards Glance at 2008

I know that 2009 has been here for quite some time. I mean, you've all probably stopped writing "08" on your checks by now. Maybe not. Sometimes I still write "99." Don't laugh. That was the year I became a mother, and we all know that children suck brain cells away like X-Men's Rogue (who, by the way has the coolest name AND the hair of the gang) sucks away others' powers.

Anyway, I thought it might be fun to go through the beginning-ish sentences of some of last years blog posts and see what kind of story they tell.

January 8 Okay, it's been almost forever since I've talked to you.

Today was a little hard, but not too bad.

January 9 I thought today would be harder than it is.

January 10 Today I spent a lot of time searching.

January 17 Last week was really hard.

January 24 Today is Day 17.

January 26 Caleb: "You know what Jesus is working on right now?"

February 7 "Gong Xi Fa Cai" or Lots of blessings and prosperity to you!

February 13 Two years! How they have zipped right on by.

February 20 40 days of prayer and God speaks...and this is where he is leading.

February 22 I just had to share this picture of my youngest two with you.

February 26 The kids begged me last weekend to let them have a cook-"in," so we rigged some wire hangers and roasted hot dogs and marshmallows for s'mores over the fire in our woodburner.

March 3 "Gabriel is transforming...into a seven-year-old!"

March 5 Last week, on a Sunday afternoon, our neighbor called.

March 13 For Lily's third birthday, my brother Josh and his wife Lana bought her a cute Barbie doll, all decked out for the beach in her fairly conservative bathing suit, wrap and big, beach feet.

March 27 I LOVE Easter. Love it.

March 31 Is your refrigerator running? You'd better go catch it! Hee hee.

April 9 Such a glorious, warm, sunny, earthy, springy weekend we were given!

April 18 I hate coloring my hair.

April 21 I gave my little blog a face lift today...do you like it?

April 23 So it's not as golden as I thought. Rob's new job is not going to work out.

April 24 I know it's officially spring, because literally overnight my weeping cherry trees erupted into full blossom.

April 30 Today Lily and I met my sister Jamie and her daughter Emmaly for a day of shopping (low budget!), lunching and just being together.

May 6 Seth Sightings

May 12 Why I love being a mother. A small sampling.

May 22 My heart is breaking today for a fellow adoptive parent.

This morning the kids and I drove out to Russ Forest to walk the trails.

May 23 I've taken Jeny's yellow challenge.

May 30 What happens when you leave your firefighters in the drier too long.

June 17 Right now, as I type, Rob is in Washington DC, either waiting for his turn to interview with the Navy Chaplain board or actually in the middle of the interview.

June 30 "Lieutenant Fasnacht." It's official!

July 8 I recently joined a yahoo group for military families who homeschool.

July 18 Have I shared with you Caleb's obsession with berries?

July 27 Yee Haw (Picture of Texas license plate, indicating that we will be moving there.)

Okay, so Friday my doctor found an "abdominal mass" the size of a softball parked in my midsection.

July 28 "Dog Show At the Fair" Gabe did really, really well. Disney...she decided she was not a performing monkey and chose obstinance over obedience.

August 5 I've had blood drawn, and I underwent an ultrasound and just yesterday a CT scan. They think it's a cyst, but I'm still waiting for the CT scan results to come back to confirm that's all it is.

"Horse Show" I'm so proud of my little cowboys.

August 11 "My Weenend In Photos and Captions" (Included are photos of Caleb's birthday and Rob's commissioning service at church.)

Blood tests for cancer: normal.

August 13 The Good: The OB surgeon is AWESOME. The Bad: Okay, I'm going to be cut open from above my navel, around my navel, and then down below my navel. The Ugly: 17 cm X 13 cm X 9 cm. Yeah, that's how big this growth is.

I have a surgery date: Tuesday, the 19th at 2:00 p.m.

August 19 "Today's the Day" (Surgery.)

August 21 Hi. I'm home. Very glad to be home.

August 22 Wanna See? ***Warning Graphic Medical Photo

August 31 "Rob's Gone: Day 2"

September 8 I'm still mending, but much to my boys' chagrin, a little tiredness on mama's part does not stop school from coming to our house.

September 17 "The New Justice League" Evil-doers beware!

I told the kids to go outside for "recess" and ride their bikes.

September 18 Pretty Lily

September 23 "Cardboard Testimonies"
::Watch this only if you want to feel so thankful to God for what he can do in a broken person's life::

October 9 The kids and I just returned from a 2100 mile round-trip road trip.

October 24 These autumn days are all running into one another.

November 3 I'm answering Jeny's pink challenge today.

Gabe's first toothless smile in seven years!

November 14 "Two." That's how many days I have left until the movers come and start loading up our stuff.

December 2 The bird has landed...and the mama bird is reassembling the nest. (Okay, that sentences really doesn't make that much sense, does it? Sorry.)

December 15 We're starting to get settled here in TX, though it's kinda hard to feel Christmasy when the needle outside points to 72 degrees.

* * *


A crazy kind of year. I've noticed lots of reasons to be SO thankful to God. I can clearly see His hand throughout it all. I can also see lots of areas that need improvement in my life...and in my writing patterns. We'll work on those things together, you and I, dear reader.

How was your year?

Decking the Halls

We're starting to get settled here in TX, though it's kinda hard to feel Christmasy when the needle outside points to 72 degrees. I can't say I'm not enjoying it though, because I am! We all are! I felt a little down this weekend as my family celebrated together with my Grandparents at their annual gathering. The first one I've ever missed. My sister called me and told me about the feast and how everyone was doing, and everyone shouted, "HI, JODY!" so that I could hear them. I felt a little better.

Last week we were able to locate the box labeled "Christmas Tree" and then the boxes with the ornaments, and we set our tree up last week. The kids and I had fun making the house look festive, even if it's only one corner of the house. The other corners are still decked in brown boxes!



We even made a few batches of cookie dough together.





I'm also working on our Christmas letter. First up, I needed a family picture. I had outfits in mind. Rob had a great idea for a location. We stopped by after church, since we were all dressed up. Unfortunately, the wind didn't give pause to our plans, so we'll try again later, maybe later today. This is an actual, untouched picture of the wind and my hair duking it out. Definitely NOT Christmas-card worthy.



Saturday, the youth activity center had a Christmas party for the kids. There were pony rides (of which all but Lily said, "No, thanks." Not a novelty for the boys, but Lily, a girl after my own heart, can't say no to anything equestrian.)



Of course, they all got a turn sitting on Santa's lap. Even Caleb and Gabe, who had eyes only for the goody bags he was handing out. Seth ran in and grabbed Santa in a huge hug and shouted, "Hi, Santa! I would like a toy robot!" A little too enthusiastically for this mom who is trying to teach her children to embrace the true meaning and spirit of Christmas. Yet I happen to know personally that Santa is looking for a robot to fill a certain red-head's stocking.

That morning the children from our chapel performed some Christmas songs for the crowd, and they repeated the performance Sunday morning. The crowd favorite: "Go Tell It On the Mountain." Gabe is a natural, and he performed like a Broadway star. Caleb played it coooooool, man. Great fun was had by all.





And as the children shared the true meaning of Christmas by song, their sweet, precious hearts kindled in me the hope and peace Christmas brings, even without the Currier and Ives view out my window. Even with family and friends who are so precious to me miles and miles away. God is near, WITH US even, and there it is, the Christmas spirit my heart was looking for.

The bird has landed...

...and the mama bird is reassembling the nest.

We made it. The cable guy just left so we have internet...hooray! The movers got here this morning around 9:30, unloaded an unbelievable amount of boxes for about five hours, tipped their hats, and left me surrounded by mountains of items I have no idea where to tuck away. This is the first house we've had that does not have a room designated as an office, so I'm having to redefine our living space. Not necessarily a bad thing, but an overwhelming task, to be sure.

Our home is adorable and we all love it. It's very different having neighbors just a few feet away and a backyard that is barely big enough for the dog, much less four children. But we are adjusting already. I think we're really going to like it here.

Today's weather in Corpus Christi: Warm and sunny. It feels like we're on vacation...for the winter. I feel chilly for my friends and family in the northern midwest who are hunkering down for winter's fury. I wish I could just bring you all down here with us. You'd have to bring your own towel, though, because I can't find mine yet.

Or the coffee filters.

Or the bedding.

Or the vacuum cleaner...which is supposedly coming by freight any day now, along with several other items that would not fit in this shipment.

I would love to send you a few pictures, but we don't have all our computer parts put back together yet.

I just wanted to let you know that we're here and doing well.

We miss you!

I'll update more soon. Back to the boxes I go...

Two

That's how many days I have left until the movers come and start loading up our stuff.

I'm ready. As ready as I'll ever be.

I'm so tired. I have some funny stories and I remember thinking, "This would be a good blog entry to entertain the masses." But I have no energy to share tonight.

And our internet will most likely be disconnected sometime Monday. Let's call that time of world wide web detachment "The Dead Zone." I hope I can cope.

Don't be alarmed if you don't hear from me for a little while. I'm probably in a van with many children. In the next two weeks, I'll be logging in 3557 miles. Some by plane, most by van.

I'm a travelin' woman.

See ya on the flip side!

All I Want for Chrith-math...

Gabe's first toothless smile in seven years!

(He's actually already lost two bottom teeth, but the adult ones were already there to fill in the holes, so we didn't get any of the fabulous toothless smiles that I cherish so.)

The other front tooth is getting pretty loose, too...I can't wait!

He asked me afterward, his brow furrowed with concern, "So, how'm I s'pose' ta say the letter 'z?' It doesn't sound so good."

He's so cute and sweet he makes my heart ache.

Calling All Pinks

I'm answering Jeny's pink challenge today. I must say that nearly everything in my home that blushes in any shade of rose is of Lily. I just don't gravitate towards pink. But Lily LOVES pink, and as mother of three sons...I love that I can bring pink into my home.



Lily loves her pink camera. And boy, does she have an eye for detail!




I see pink toes peeking out of the pink blanket I bought for her when she was still waiting for us. We took it to China with us so that she would have something familiar to cuddle when she came to her new home.




This is the pink section of a gorgeous portrait Rob's mother painted of all of my children. She gave it to us on Lily's first birthday home with us. It is a family treasure.





These are some of the pink squares of fabric I've collected from family and friends--and some strangers from adoption groups--to make Lily's 100 Good Wishes Quilt. It's a tradition from Northern China. I have many different colors, but I just pulled out some of the pink ones to show you. Hey, some of you haven't given Lily a square yet. I'm hoping to finish this for her next Gotcha Day (in February). I would love to have an 8 inch square of fabric from each of my family and friends, along with a wish or prayer for her written on a card to go in an album with the quilt. It will be an heirloom for Lily to treasure, to know how wanted and loved she is.

Blogger Vacation

I took one. A long one. But I'm back. I hope ya'll didn't give up on me.

These autumn days are all running into one another. Only 27 more days until I fly out to be with Rob for his graduation from the chaplaincy school. Only 30 until we're all together as a family! Woohoo!

The boys do have a trick-or-treat date set up with a friend of ours who works for a local nursing home. Caleb and Lily's costumes are finished. Gabe's is going to be the most work, but I should be done soon. And Seth...well, he said that wants to be a "blue cat with blue stripes who's a "NINJA MASTAH!" Um...Can we say redirection? If not, we'll figure something out! I do have some blue face paint and I know we have ninja costumes from the boys' dress up box. I may be able to make this work...

We carved our pumpkins two days ago. The experience was a study of the effects of sibling birth order in action. Does anyone else find that as interesting a topic as me? We have a little loop-d-loop in our family, since Lily joined our family last, but she is older than Seth.

Caleb, the oldest, set about making an index of all the possible jack-o-lanterns he could think of. List-maker. (When thinking of a Halloween costume, he also drew out all the possibilities so that he could pick on.) He probably drew about 10 different jack-o-lanterns. I thought, "No way are the rest of the kids going to want to pick one of his ideas." But true to his take-charge leadership skills, he convinced all the other kids that he was actually doing them a favor by designing all the jack-o-lanterns, that there really weren't any other viable options, and he was being gracious enough to allow them to have a choice at all. I kept quiet to see how this would play out. They all sat down together outside to draw their designs.

Gabriel, middle child #1, was happy to go along with Caleb, to make him happy, people-please that he is. However, he added a couple extra features to make it stand out and be unique. Peace-maker. Yet he still wants to make his own mark in the world. (This is the same kid who carved last year's jack-o-lantern face upside down so that it would stand out from everyone else's.)

Lily, middle child #2, picked out a traditional face for her "pumpkin night-light" but didn't want to use Caleb's list. Caleb convinced her that she needed to. She also wanted to add something unique to hers, in that she wanted hers to be a girl and have hair, which of course Caleb did not include in the list of choices. She went to great extents to blaze her own trail, separate from the others. She definitely wants to do her own thing, follow her own ideas, rejecting other good ideas, just because she's not the one who came up with it.

Seth, baby of the family, picked out a face, but he wanted to pander off any of the work, like carrying the pumpkin to the table or scooping out guts. He also wanted me to draw his chosen design. He couldn't help, he said. He was "too little." Yep, he played the baby-of-the-family card and got out of all the work somehow. And somehow, I let him.

Road Trip

The kids and I just returned from a 2100 mile round-trip road trip. We journeyed out from Michigan to Rhode Island to witness their dad graduate as a Naval officer. The trip there was full of excitement and anticipation, and the kids behaved so well. My mom and Rob's mom came out with us--I doubt I would have been able to do this without them--and we drove Rob's jeep to him so that he would have transportation during the next section of his training. So we divided the kids between the two vehicles to ward off conflicts. It worked. On the way home, all seven of us were crammed in the van, and there wasn't a lot of fighting, but OH, THE NOISE. It was quite the challenge to drive through NY City and then down the New Jersey Turnpike with squeally Lily and yelling Seth and giggly Gabe. Caleb was the quietest one...unless he was sitting by Lily, who engaged him in her loud and physical play.

But other than the noise, the kids did great.

Oh, the joy of that very first glimpse of Rob dressed in his summer whites. Hubba hubba. Caleb and Gabe tried to leap out of the moving van. Lily and Seth screamed and laughed. My heart was full and my smile was large.



The first words out of Seth's mouth: "Dad! You're a captain!" (Not quite...) Later he told me, "Daddy wears a pilot's costume!" Seth and Lily clung to Rob the whole time. Seth especially couldn't stop touching him. Lily said, "Can we please bring Daddy and his red jeeper home with us? Pleeeeeeeease?"

We had the best time with him. His graduation was as full of pomp and promenade as you can imagine there would be in a Naval ceremony.

Our time together sped by, and too quickly we had to say good-bye.

Seven more weeks...six and a half now...and we'll be a family together and not apart.

We're so proud of him and the sacrifice he is making to answer God's call.







The sadness of departing Rhode Island (a gorgeous, highly under-recognized destination) mixed with excitement about our next stop: historical Philadelphia.

WE LOVED IT! Standing in the same room that held so many American Greats gave me goose bumps. Being so close to the bell that rang out its announcement of FREEDOM! swelled my heart with thankfulness to the God who gives true freedom and the people who have sacrificed so much so that my children can live in a free country. In the midst of economic unknowns and election-year divisions, still I must stand up and say, "God bless America, land that I love!"

Cardboard Testimonies

::Watch this only if you want to feel so thankful to God for what he can do in a broken person's life::

He uses cracked pots. And we're all cracked pots.

He delights in redeeming prodigals. We have all at one time or another left the side of the Father who loves us to seek out our own desires...and failed.

He loves to lift the humble. If only I will humble my heart in obedience, He will do miracles in my life.

I hope you enjoy this as much as I did.

Praising God today,
Jody

Haircut

Before...




After...still wet







Pretty Lily

Peddling Pedals?

I told the kids to go outside for "recess" and ride their bikes.

They decided to play store with their bikes instead. Each bike was a different mechanical booth. Spin the pedals which spins the wheels, and out pops a treat. Very Chitty-Chitty-Bang-Bang-esque. I was wondering why they asked me if I wanted to buy a cookie.

This isn't exactly what I had in mind when I sent them out to get some exercise...

The New Justice League

Three of these crime-fighters are my sister's.

Conversations heard throughout the day:

"Have you seen Super Lily?"

"I Spiderman!"

"Mom, Seth took my gun!"

"I am NOT a bad guy! Mom, Caleb says I'm a bad guy!"

"I need a cape, too!"

"Can you help me with my mask?"

Plus multiple sound effects including flying, shooting, swording and webbing.

::Evil-doers beware::

My Little Wild Man

*Notice Lily in the second frame trying to get away from the inevitable splash.

Don't you just L.O.V.E. the goggles???







"Again!"

School

I'm still mending, but much to my boys' chagrin, a little tiredness on mama's part does not stop school from coming to our house.

Caleb's says: "Hmph. I hate school."

Gabriel says: "I can't wait until summer vacation so I can get back to my real life."

Lily says: "Mommy, can you help me with my school?" while poking me with a pencil out of a deep sleep at 6:00 in the morning.

Seth says: "I don't have any pencil sharpeners," grinning and holding all four of them behind his back.














I mailed copies of these pictures to Rob so that he could see them all hard at work.

They are too precious. I SO love being their mom. When I die, if these children are all I have to show for a life's work, my life will have been full to overflowing and completely successful.

Rob's gone...day two

Two exes on the calendar.

Two colorful, construction-paper chain links clipped away.

Only 33 more until we see him again.

The kids and I are doing okay.

Lily asked on the way home from the airport, "Is Daddy going to church with us tomorrow?" "No, honey, Daddy will be in Navy school." "What?!" she exclaimed incredulously. She asked if we could go back to the airport tomorrow and pick him up. She keeps asking for confirmation that we are going to go see him on Seth's birthday, which we are. Over and over she asks. I gently reassure her over and over.

Seth said, "I miss my daddy. He's my favorite kind of daddy." I'm with ya, buddy. Then after church this morning, my mom picked him up from his class. Rob usually does this. Seth asked her, "Where's my dad?" She told him, "He's in Navy school." He didn't say anything, but just looked straight ahead, suddenly remembering.

Caleb said, as we watched Rob's red and gray plane fly off into the blue, "This is the worst day of my life." He posted to his blog: "Today my dad left to Rhode Island for Navy training. I feel a little down, but I'm glad he's going into the Navy, because the Lord Jesus told us to go." Rob's obedience is having a tremendous impact on our children.

Gabriel posted to his blog today. His post is titled "When Dad Left" and it reads simply this: "Dad left. It was hard. I was sad." He's mostly quiet and introspective about his thoughts, but on the page he expressed himself clearly and effectively, nearly breaking my heart.



We miss him. I still sleep on my side of the bed and reach over for him in the fogginess of early morning. Then I suddenly remember, too. 33 more days.

When Rob got to the Newport naval station, he checked in, got his orders signed, and was then told that he is on leave until Monday night because of the holiday weekend. His lucky roommate only lives an hour from the base, so he checked in, and then he went home to spend the weekend with his wife and child. I am happy for the leave time, because at least Rob can call me when he wants to. Here are a couple tidbits from his new experience: the food is not good, he is surrounded by water and noisy seagulls, the dark of evening comes a lot earlier in RI than MI, and he can't seem to find a coffee maker anywhere on base. God have mercy! He's got another whole day of nothing...and then he's going to be thrown into the deep end.



I'm doing better. I'm down to needing pain meds only a couple of times a day. For me the worst part is how easily wiped out I get. I hate the blah feeling of exhaustion with nothing to show for it. I have a post-op doctor's visit this Friday. I can then talk to my surgeon in length about my surgery and the cyst.

Thanks again to everyone for their thoughts and prayers. We're still prayer needy...