Obedience = Adventure

Our hearts crave adventure. We were made that way. So, we often spend tons of money and time trying to grasp that elusive, amazing, deep-down-in-the-gut satisfying feeling we get when in the middle of an adventure.



But . . . . to be obedient to God is THE beginning of being part of His great adventure. When we are truly obedient and have our hands open in surrender, He never fails to call us to something that is truly an adventure that our hearts were made for.



Such is our adoption.



Adventures are not easy, otherwise they wouldn't be called adventures. They would be "rides", I guess, with not much effort for us to have to put in. But adventures are hard work and often scary, mixed with exhilaration, exhaustion, joy, frustration, fear and just plain silliness and fun (yeah, throw some impatience, anger and grumpiness into the mix, too, honestly). Thank God we are not called to an adventure on our own, but instead to walk next to GOD! How cool is that.



Such is our adoption.



I hope to keep stepping out in obedience no matter what. I hope to keep my hands open in surrender and ready to embrace whatever God puts before us. I hope to be obedient in the daily things, spending time with God and also stopping my own jabbering and being quiet before Him so I can hear HIM, and trust that He is good and that the adventure He calls us to is also good, no matter what. Are you with me?

OK, here are some pictures for those of you that don't read my post, but just like the photos.

These shots are from a recent camping trip we went on with several other families who have adopted or are in the process of adopting from Ethiopia in West Michigan. What fun! And what a privilege to have a group like this to support each other.

Here, you can see our new Beagle, Bo, in the background. Things are going ~pretty~ well with him. Wish he would figure out the electric fence better. What was I thinking???

Here is some of the group enjoying our time at the beach.

Jambo (no longer his name, but unless you come visit us, mum's the word) totally exfoliating in the sand.

Kume (again, her nickname) drawn to water at a pump like any typical kid.

About their names, we wondered how long it would take older kids like them to embrace their new names. Well, the answer in our case is about 2.5 months. We paired both their names together all the time, with a few slip ups here and there, and they easily slid into their American names, and now call each other by these names.

Also, since lots of people comment on their language development, just wanted to let you know they have spoken up to 8 word sentences. Genius? Boy, I hope not, we wouldn't have a clue what to do with that! We are enjoying it, though.

old/new . . . . big/little

Yes, sweet Cheyenne is gone. Yes, I told the kids we would probably get another dog sometime next fall. Yes, we just got a Beagle named Bo. We got him Friday from a wonderful friend in my prayer group. I was sharing our grief over the loss of Cheyenne at my prayer group (an incredible group of women I am SO blessed to do life with) and hours later I was bringing home Bo to "test drive" him with our family. I am such a sucker.

Also, we are on to another layer of attaching. The past couple days the twins have been wondering about breast feeding. I have a feeling they nursed up until they had to say goodbye to their Ethiopian mother in December. My first response as they started to reach for me was "sweetie, that is private" until I recognized this was probably a bonding layer as they feel more connected with me, so I have been pretty open to them. I informed them that Mommy's milk is all gone, then yesterday Kume cracked me up when she hit the nail on the head. My dear daughter ultimately declared, "Lots of milk -- BIG, milk all gone -- LITTLE," using both her voice and hand gestures for emphasis and clarity. Okay, okay, they're little.

Kids . . . say . . . the . . .darnedest . . . things.

Cheyenne the dog - April 28, 2000 - June 9,2008

After a couragous battle with liver disease (and the end coming much more quickly than we expected) . . . we put our sweet, sweet dog Cheyenne to sleep today. She was a very good dog and despite her lack of interest in playing fetch (unless there was peanut butter on the ball) she was just perfect in so many ways.

Just last week, we were enjoying a hike in one of our favorite parks.

She started getting sick a few days later.

I came across this some time ago... I thought it was creative, and true in a ridiculous sort of way.

15 things we can learn from dogs:
1. Never pass up the opportunity to go for a joy ride.
2. Allow the experience of fresh air and the wind in your face to be pure ecstasy.
3. When loved ones come home, always run to greet them.
4. When it’s in your best interest, practice obedience.
5. Let others know when they’ve invaded your territory.
6. Take naps and stretch before rising.
7. Run, romp, and play daily.
8. Eat with gusto and enthusiasm.
9. Be loyal.
10. If what you want lies buried, dig until you find it.
11. When someone is having a bad day, be silent. Sit close by and nuzzle them gently.
12. Thrive on attention and let people touch you.
13. Avoid biting when a simple growl will do.
14. When you’re happy, dance around and wag your entire body.
15. No matter how often you’re scolded, don’t buy into the guilt thing and pout…. run right back and make friends
16. Delight in the simple joys of a long walk.

Our eldest may have taken it the hardest... He stayed up with her until midnight, then slept with her in the bathroom her last night with us. Ahh, a boy and his dog.

We will miss you, you sweet, lovable old girl.

real

So I am at work, just returning for my one night a week, and since it is slow I get the chance to check out some of my favorite blogs.

Today, I needed to check them out because it was a hard day for me. Honestly, it wasn't anything in particular, in fact, I can't remember any real difficulties, I just felt like I didn't have IT to give today. That is a tough part of the journey. Those days when things just don't make sense, when you feel down for no apparent reason, when you just feel exhausted and don't feel head-over-heels over your kids.

Driving in to work, though, I felt God gently remind me that love is a commitment, not a feeling. And even though today I had a hard time mustering up deep, loving "feelings", I can trust God to give me what I need to be completely committed to my family. I initially was a little disappointed (yes, total understatement) that my employer would not grant me the 12 weeks family leave that I would have gotten if I had given birth (that really is absolutely ridiculous). But I now understand that God knew I would need to be away from my family for a few hours to see the bigger picture, His bigger picture. So, after reading some blogs and doing some praying and just reminding myself of the Truth, I am ready to go home and hug my kids.

There, a real post.

What we have been up to....

So, I thought I had better get a lot of pictures out, since it seems to be quite difficult for me to find time to get on the computer much these days.

First things first.

Wow! These kids are great. ALL of them. The adjusting continues to be going SO well and we feel so fortunate and blessed.

For any of you readers out there, that are still considering your adoption plans, we would love to put a HUGE plug in for getting older kids, AND for getting more than one. I know at Gladney, there were several precious, beautiful kids at the older kids foster home, who are not matched with a family. That means they are just WAITING for a family. Maybe yours? All the infants at the Gladney homes are matched with families, but when you see these 20 or so kids ages 2-11 that are so ready, but few are pursuing older kids, it just makes you wonder how many you can cram into your own house, you know?

Now on to our life:

Our life is full. Our driveway is full of trikes, skateboards, bikes, rip sticks, sidewalk chalk, bats, balls...., our laundry room is FULL (no more explanation needed), our days are full of adjusting, our pantry and fridge are stuffed full of food, our dining room table is full of laughter (along with chunks and crumbs on the floor), our stomachs are full (although, ridiculously, we take this for granted), our floor is full of hot wheels, legos, snap-beads, etc, the kids are full of medicine (boo-hiss -- giardia), our counter is full of backpacks, lunch boxes, school papers, pokemon cards (for a few more days, at least, and then stored away in a full closet until school starts), our house is just plain full.

But most thankfully full of God's goodness and grace (a VERY good thing since we are far from perfect parents with far from perfect kids).

The twins said they just weren't tired, so REALLY didn't need a nap. So here we are, as CJ got home from school, all zonked. But, hey, we weren't really tired....

Oh, and I found out that, yes, my lap IS big enough!

PRETTY!!!

A rite of passage for the boys in our house, and Jambo can be no exception. This is, however, the first time we are putting this on the internet where it will be a permanent fixture in cyberspace. I think Kume knows it. Can't you just tell?

Yikes!

Who knew they would LOVE raw onions? What a great snack (huh?) to tide them over while I am getting dinner ready. This may be an excellent tactic right before they leave for a date someday.....

Memorial Day at Hager Park with Farmboy's side of the family.

Jambo's hair is starting to get long again.

I was thinking of doing those super-cute mini-dreads on him. We'll see.

Man, I am having fun!

This is generally their favorite way to view the world.

This time with Zgirl and cousin Claire.

Those first few days in Ethiopia, I am not sure I could have envisioned this. But now our sweet Kume is head over heels over her daddy.

OK, I think Kume smiles about 98.7% of the time. This is one of the lovely ones.

Are they listening?

Apparently they liked the music in church today. We were casually singing later at home only to find them joining in from a room away... do you think they are picking up the language?

Three weeks as this family....

Ah, I love that God led us to adopt!


I am NOT saying everything is easy. Far from the truth, but it is GOOD.

Last week we ordered our new, big table. Yes, we could have ordered it before we traveled to get the kids, but until they were in our arms, I just didn't feel ready to get anything. We also bought another set of bunk beds, although the girls seem to have no problem sharing Zgirl's double bed. I've checked in on them, all snuggled together. Awwww.

Only a few more weeks of cramming around this one:

Speaking of sleeping, they decided they want to sleep with their siblings, and not us anymore. So we usually let them all wind down for half an hour in front of the TV, then it is off to bed. Yes, I used to be quite strict with TV viewing, but I have a feeling these 2 are going to see lots more TV then our other kids did at that age.

They love water, just like our other kids. Awesome!

I finally took out Kume's braids, and this is what it looks like after a deep conditioner and de-frizzer were used. I better get some good braiding books. Of course, I still think she looks adorable!