Today we completed our last step of finalizing our adoption by doing a our reconition(i can't spell that) anyway of adoption in our state. So thank goodness all is over and done.

I love her more than words.

Goosebumps

Catching up

O.K. after much technical difficulties I am going to do my best to try to catch up and share our Busy summer! This is my first year as a stay-at-home mom and boy have we played hard. We camped, went four wheeler riding, went to church camp, went to Wild River country, went to the beach, went to West Virginia, swam most everyday, and I have some of the most awesome pictures and between those and Guatemala pictures that I still haven't developed I have a huge job ahead of me in getting that done alone as well as I may need to go to work just to be able to afford to get them all developed. I will say though we have had the best!!! Our family was all together this summer and the stress of the adoption was gone!!! Praise the Lord!, so i just can't say enough but I am ready for school to start! I am tired.
P.s can someone please tell me how to turn this blog into a book?
I am ready to do that atleast I would like to make our adoption journey part of this into a book soon. So any advice I would appreciate it!
Anyway, I would like to share that the prays I asked for regarding us finding God's direction for our family, I would like to say that we feel them and God is at work. I can't wait to explain but need to get a little farther in the process but we are definatly feeling some peace about this. So thank you.
Anyway Today is the Day that the Lord made!! So I will rejoice and be Glad in it!

Pictures

i am going to try one more time at posting our vacation photos.

Dangerously Surrender

I have just started reading the book "Dangerously Surrender" that has been talked about on many of the blogs I read so if you have read it our would like to get started reading it.. it is on sale now at Christian Book Outlet. I would love to get any comments you may have on this book or my comments about it.

"For you to become a seriously disturbed, surrendered person of faith, you will have to be willing to say yes in advance--- to give God your answer before you have heard the question."

Am I willing to say yes before the question?
Is my family willing to say yes before the question?

O.K. I am very mad. I just spent 30 minutes trying to catch up on my blogging and the crazy computer just deleted it. I guess I should just take it as what I was writing wasn't the right thing to say then, Oh well! anyway because I am tired and ready to go to bed I am just going to try to post some very adorable pictures for now and maybe the other that I was going to say will come back to me later.

Here we Are!!!!

Yes were still around we have just been on vacation and had no internet service but today I am just going to pay for it because I am just having internet(blogging) withdrawls.
Vacation has been wonderful we spent a week in Fort walton Beach, Florida for my best friends wedding and now we are in west Virginia for our church National Convention. Our kids are in the youth competions Christian is competing in Photo Essay and Corie is singing with our church youth ensemble. Sooo will see how that goes but we have had a great time and proudly I can say that driving all around the world with a 2 year old was even good.
My family has some pretty big decisions to make soon though and although I don't want to write about it yet I will soon. I would just like to ask for your prayers as we seek God's will for our family.

Happy Independence Day!

Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Special celebration

I have some catching up to do and I will start with the most important.
June 21,2008 we celebrated by dedicating God's Precious little girl back to him.
Josie is just a very special gift the Lord is thankfully trusting us to take care of here on earth as a family but she belongs to him. Our job now is to make sure she knows her heavenly Father and to teach her and raise her to know she is a child of the KING! It is the most special honor the Lord has ever given us to be trusted to be the parents of 3 of his most special treasure. And of course they are ours!

Josie, you are so special! we know the Lord has Big plans for you and just can't wait to see the rest of the awesome things the Lord has for you. I can't imagine my life without you. I love you so much, Mom.

Happy Dedication Day!

And of course I can't hardly post without showing some of Josie's cuteness

This is yesterday's fun with sissy.

Time of searching

Please remember me in your prayers if you will. God is again stirring so much in me. All through Josie's adoption I knew that her adoption wasn't all God had for my family. While we spent time in Guatemala our hearts stirred so heavily and then we were so ready to say yes to God whatever the next step was. Our fear was when we got back we would just return to same ol same ol everyday life. But we knew then that if he truely allowed us the experience of being in Guatemala and seeing what we saw and feeling his presence so strongly that he wouldn't quit then that maybe the time wasn't right then but that he wouldn't let our hearts rest. Well my heart is stirring again. After my last post I read the book "The Prayer of Jabez" and let me tell you if you haven't read it you should and it is a small book you can read it in a day. Anyway it is a Wow book.
So will you please help me pray that the Lord will continue show Carrol and I his plan for us and for me not to rush him. Carrol says I am just addicted to drama. So I pray that we will just very carefully and openly listen to God.

I am not sure just how to title this post so I am just going to start typing and see what flows out. we have had some eventful weeks so I have lots of things to post pictures of but.... Now that Josie is home with us I don't want my blog to be just about pictures. I want it to mean something just as it did while we were waiting. I know this is said a million times but I am really burdened about it lately. Why is it that when we need God we search and search to feel him with us everyminute and then when things are going good we just seem to start idoling through life again. I know thats were I am at right now and although I am probably the most content in my life that I have ever been I want that I am on fire, in-Love with Jesus back. You see expecially when you have seen and felt his presence like I have you know when something is missing when you start idoling again.
I have always told myself to never let myself forget what it felt like when I couldn't make it trough the day if I didn't spend my time alone with God. and now well it seems as though the only person I spend time alone with is my kids, and sadly my husband isn't hardly even in that. So I am guiet lately and hope to do some more soul searching and get my self on tract.
Anyway here are some cute pictures of the week I did take 13 girls pretty much by myself except for some good night time help to church camp. It was fun though and time i did need to spend with Corie.
Did I mention that I left Josie home with her daddy... by there selves!!!!
I know it was harder on me than her, all I could think about was how I spent the last year and a half losing my mind wanting her home with me. and I left her at home!!! but it was great and I did need to share some time so that daddy could have some Josie time. All went well and she still loves her mommy!

Wow!

I read something on another blog this morning that I felt was very worthy of being shared here too.
There are 150 MILLION ORPHANS around the world and if only 7% of all christians would choose to adopt their would be no more orphans!

Guatemala Waiting parents

Isiah 1:23
Your rulers are rebels
And compassion of thieves;
Everyone loves a bribe
And chases after rewards:
They do not defend the orphan,
Nor does the widow's plea come
before them.


Psalm 10:17-18
O Lord you have heard the desire of the humble:
You will strengthen their heart,
You will incline your ear
to vindicate the orphan and the oppressed,
So that man who is of the earth will no longer cause terror.

As long as we are on the earth there will always be evilness but We have a mighty GOD that is always bigger than the sin of the world and will always have his ears open to his children so today I pray for Guatemala. We know the Lord has a plan in all things but just sometimes has to use even corrupt people to fullfill His purpose. So our trust in in Him and him alone We know that his true love is for the orphan and the widows. I pray that these evil people causing the corruption in these adoptions will be used for his Glory! (That would sure tick them off, huh!)

Celebration of Samuel Jacob and Noah Joseph

Sunday, June 8 was a very special day for my brother and sister-in-law. It was a day that we celebrated the special gifts of these little boys into our family and the dedication of them to the Lord. It was a awesome day and what a blessing. We got to celebrate with them and being able to have Josie home with us. What a outpouring of God's Blessings.

yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Our prayers have been answered and Izzy is back at her original orphange where Kathy and Jaime can stay and watch over her again and with this being said let's get this Baby home in Texas soon! Thanks for the prayers!

Special prayer request

My special friends Kathy and Jaime are in desperate need of prayers lifted up in there behalf. Kathy and her daughter Izzy were our neighbors in Guatemala. I can't discuss much about their situation becuase they wish to keep things private for now until Izzy is safely and officially their daughter. this family has had thier share of grief in this lifetime and know one deserves to go through the pain they have experienced since being parents. my heart breaks for them. Kathy has had Izzy in her care since January and yesterday PGN took her. Again thats all I will say but at least you know the extreme of it. So if you would please pray a specific prayer for them today. i know that Kathy has to feel she is having to take more than she can stand and I know that her understanding of God's plan in this is not good. We know though that God knows the beginning and the end of this though and he knows how much they can stand. I know that is isn't what the Lord is doing to her but that he chose her becuase he knew she would be the best mommie in the world to fight for this baby girl. I would do anything to be there for her today so lets please join and pray that during this struggle Kathy and Jaime will feel the Lords big arms around them carring them when they don't have the strenth to do it alone.


DEAR LORD,
WE THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE BLESSINGS THAT YOU GIVE US EVERDAY AND WE THANK YOU LORD THAT YOU PROTECTED US FROM THIS KIND OF EVILNESS WHILE WE WERE IN GUATEMALA.ALL THOUGH SOMETIMES WE FEEL THINGS AREN'T GOING GOOD AND THAT YOU AREN'T ANSWERING US, YOU ARE, YOU ALWAYS ARE. LORD, WE LIFT THIS FAMILY UP TO YOU AND WE PRAY THAT YOU WILL WATCH OVER AND KEEP SWEET IZZY, PROTECT HER AS WE KNOW THAT YOU WILL AFTER ALL SHE BELONGS TO YOU AS DO KATHY AND JAIME AND YOU WILL NEVER LEAVE OR FORSAKE THEM. i PRAY THEY FEEL A PEACE THAT PASSETH ALL UNDERSTANDING. LORD, WE KNOW YOUR PLANS ARE SO MUCH BIGGER THAN OURS AND YOU WILL ALWAYS FINISH WHAT YOU STARTED. LORD, WE KNOW YOU ASKED KATHY AND JAIME TO BE IZZY PARENTS AND YOU WILL SEE THAT THROUGH. WE JUST PRAY TODAY THAT YOU WILL SEND JUST THE RIGHT PERSON OR SHOW JUST THE THING THAT NEEDS TO HAPPEN TO GET IZZY BACK HOME WITH KATHY.
AGAIN WE THANK YOU HUMBLY FOR ALL YOU HAVE DONE FOR US AND WILL DO. WE LOVE YOU.
IN JESUS NAME, AMEN.

This is my desire to be a better servant

http://proverbs31devotions.blogspot.com/2007/06/open-for-service.html

Josie's 1st swimming lessons

It's funny I have taken all 3 kids to swimming lessons but all 3 have just learned to swim right at home. Josie in her 2nd time in the pool at home believe it or not I am so excited to say swam alone (with floaties of course) Yesterday her second time in our pool! Wow, what a proud mommy I am! Here are a few pictures of her swimming lessons that we took at lessons which were fun, I mostly wanted her to go just for the outing of being around other kids and hopefully teach her a little something. and it did it taught her to keep her mouth closed and that's always a good thing.