Rear View

One year ago TODAY, this was my view. 

Darin and I were on our way to Ukraine for our 

first of two trips to officially adopt Irina into our family. 

(Oh, I'm so glad that I get to lay down flat tonight to sleep!)

This will be a week/month of reminiscing. A time to remember God's goodness to 

us over the past two years as He very clearly led us down the path of adoption. 

TWO years ago on October 22, 2012, we made the prayerful decision to host Irina. 

Reminisce HERE. We had NO idea what God had in store for us. God knew. 

ONE year ago on October 23, 2012, we were reunited with Irina in Ukraine

after being apart for nine and a half months. That sounds short now, but at the time it felt 

so painfully long. I remember clearly that first hug at the orphanage and her big smile. 

Reminisce with us HERE. We had no idea how much God would bless us on that first trip. God knew. 

What a gift it is to me to be able to look back 

at this blog and see clear evidence of God at work. 

His tender care. His mercies. His LOVE for us.

God is so good! I am overwhelmed. 

What an unforgettable couple years it has been.

One Hour of Fun

Our little butterfly has been taking some steps backward lately. It's not unexpected, but it's not easy. One of the boys has been learning to deal with passionate emotions. It's not a huge surprise, but it's not welcomed. I live in a house of "sinners," 

myself included. The behaviors we see are not shocking, but it can surely be very rocky and tiring. 

We're talking about "love and forgiveness" verses "revenge and self-seeking" almost daily. (hourly?)

But for ONE hour this weekend, we were able to forget ALL of that and just have fun. 

We spent ONE hour playing tag at a nearby park. 

We scared the little kiddos away. (Not really, I hope... maybe they were already leaving?) 

Even Mommy and Daddy played tag for a LONG time. 

Try as I might, I could NOT tag Daddy. He's just too fast. ;)

Sure was good to run around between the drips of rain together. So thankful. 

Treacherous

"Mumma, come outside. Bring your camera. 

I have something treacherous to show you," exclaimed Aaron. (age 6)

Monday afternoon, Aaron made a new obstacle 

course on the play set while the big boys were at school. 

He was so proud of his skills. I was proud of his vocabulary. ;) 

Oh my goodness!

New Creation

Sitting at the table working with Aaron yesterday, I was struck by the multiple butterflies out my kitchen window. 

There were 10 or more monarch butterflies on our butterfly bush all day.

It was nearly impossible to stop myself from watching them and taking pictures. 

Aaron was very patient waiting for me to help him with his school work. 

 When the older boys brought home the school newspaper, I was so encouraged that the 

"Devotion of the Month" was on how as Christians we are like a butterfly that comes out of a cocoon. 

It was perfect timing to encourage my heart. God will not stop His work of making us NEW!

"Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has 

passed away; behold the new has come." 2 Corinthians 5:17

First Tractor Ride

Since this is our first fall with Irina here, we are taking full advantage of experiencing "firsts." Sunday afternoon, we went as a family to a local farm for a tractor ride to the pumpkin patch. Irina LOVED her tractor ride. (The boys were amused too!) 

Wish I took audio of her chattering and giggling. 

 I love that Ethan asked to sit by me on the tractor and Irina offered to take a picture. 

"Me go again pick pumpkins, Mommy," 

She is not so happy we plan to wait a year before we pick pumpkins again. ;) 

Thankfully, she is distracted easily. 

Crafts with Grammy

When my parents moved to Virginia, we were very careful not to take advantage of them by asking for lots of babysitting. We don't use sitters very often, but when we needed one we have a couple teenage girls we've hired. However, everything changed when Irina joined our family. It was a long time before we left Irina with anyone besides Darin or me. When we first committed to weekly counseling, the only sitter we trusted to understand Irina's behavior was family. We are very grateful that my mom is near enough and willing to come once a week to care for our crazy hooligans!
(And she has even missed a few bridge games in order to serve us.)

 Every other week, she comes prepared with crafts to do with the kids. They love it!
Here are just a few of her creative ideas. The balloon man below was created by Aaron.

 String art with paint seen below. 

 Gluing beans on tiles

Melting crayon wax on pre-drawn designs. 

We are very grateful for her servant heart. 

Now I just need to figure out what to do with all these projects. ;) 

Hanging On

When I glanced up at the light fixture in our two story foyer and saw this bear, I could totally relate.

Sometimes it feels like I am just barely hanging on. ;)

I was meditating on this scripture this morning from Psalm 13: 

"How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever?

How long will you hide your face from me?

How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and 

everyday have sorrow in my heart? 

How long will my enemy triumph over me?

Look on me and answer, O Lord my God. 

Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death;

my enemies will say, I have overcome him, 

and my foes will rejoice when I fall. 

But I trust in your unfailing love; 

my heart rejoices in your salvation. 

I will sing to the Lord, for he has been good to me."

According to the notes in my Bible, this scripture was written

by David at a time when he was struggling with a life threatening illness.

I have no life threatening illness, but I do have a real enemy that seeks to 

devour me. The enemy I am battling is the evil one who tries 

to attack my thoughts and knowledge of God's truth. 

I am battling against my sin and the sin of others against me. 

But the Psalmist does something that I'm not inclined to do. 

In the midst of that battle (which for him is a battle for life or death), 

He TRUSTS, REJOICES, and SINGS to the Lord. 

"Affirm your trust in [God], regardless of how you feel. Thank [God] for everything, 

though this seems unnatural - even irrational." Sarah Young

1) I praise God for His WORD. I praise Him for giving us scripture and truth to blot out the lies of the evil one. I praise Him for music. Music is a balm for my soul. I've been obsessed with the "Seeds of Worship" CD's. It is scripture set to music and although I think it is intended for kids, I have been listening to it nonstop. I need to crowd out the lies with TRUTH. 

2) I thank God for this sweet, sweet boy. He can be a pill BUT, his sensitive spirit always senses when I am discouraged or sad. He is quick to hug me, kiss me, and remind me he loves me. I love his hugs. God has blessed me with a special connection with this one. 

3) Might sound irrational, but I thank God that we have not had any broken bones or emergency room visits in a while. :) These kids are testing every limit. 

4) I thank God for how art soothes one boy's soul. Even if that means he spent 5 hours drawing, tracing, and coloring horses instead of doing schoolwork. 

5) I thank God for these sibling friendships. One of the blessings and struggles of homeschooling is that they are together so much. They truly love each other. (Sometimes they express their love with fists, other times it is with hugs.) You should see the goodbye's on homeschool academy days. They are hugging and kissing and waving as the big boys pull away with Daddy.

6) I thank God for laughter. Some days I need to really force it to happen. Today was one of those days. A quick pink highlighter mustache does wonders for my cranky 5th grader. The giggles were AWESOME!! This photo is terribly unflattering. I have not taken a shower today and I'm still in my exercise clothes. Notice I didn't make it extra large. :) Please note: the mustache did not wash off easily. I still have a pink face, but it was so worth it.