gathering peeps...

almost home!

oh, my gracious!  they will be home TODAY!

ash sent this pic yesterday morning:

i was at the paint store and i just smiled.  and teared up.  i miss them so much!  and i can't wait to hear all about their adventure!

freedom

nothing says "independence day" like ball park hot dogs on a chinese melamine platter:

of course, when there are four chinese people at your house celebrating their freedom, i guess that's appropriate.

too much rolling around in my head yesterday when it comes to "freedom".  even this morning (the day after independence day), i keep asking myself what "freedom" really means...  i dare not get political (i'll leave that to my husband), but it's hard to not think about our freedoms in america when i see this in my home day after day:

four children.  

not born to me, but born to women in a country that does not see that "all men were created equal" (maybe all men, but certainly not women or people with special needs...).  

children that might never have been allowed to learn "that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

i have freedom.

i have the freedom to know christ.  i have the freedom to be moved by the holy spirit and to act on his prompting.  i have the freedom to pass these freedoms on...

they have the freedom to live outside a cultural definition of value - even in their gender and special needs.  they have the freedom to know christ and to follow him radically and openly.  

i am thankful that in god's kindness, he gave me america and freedom.  i was reminded of the weight of my freedoms and that all these freedoms should not be squandered.  every gift we are given should be stewarded well.

how do we steward our gift of freedom?  

i'm reminded of the parable of the talents from matthew 25.

when we face christ and he asks how we managed all our gifts - including our freedom - how will we respond? 

so if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. - john 8:36

zoo

it's wednesday.

and, you know what that means...

walking wednesday.

i can't remember if i mentioned it before, but walking wednesday has to be: outside and free.

today, we visited a little zoo in a nearby town.

my bunch for the day:

ash and austin are on a missions trip this week in south dakota.  ash hasn't even been able to join ONE of our wednesdays yet :(

we loved this zoo!  it was small, but beautiful!  no exotic animals, but a lot of fun ones that we don't get to see close-up every day.  and it is FREE!  it certainly didn't hurt that it was in the mid 70's when we went this morning!  unseasonably cool for july!

the kids got to excavate a fossil site!  {wink}  that was actually their favorite part!  

my little paleontologists:

they also got to climb around on this giant spider web.  anna exclaimed: "LOOK!  there's a spider web ON the spider web!"

 

 

happy birthday, kari!!! - updated!

FUNDRAISER ENDED
SEE BELOW FOR WINNERS! 

Kari's Birthday Fundraiser total - $1,835!!!  Happy Birthday, Kari!

 

- $20 Starbuck's gift card - WINNER ADAM

- $25 Olive Garden gift card - WINNER DEBBY

- "Free to Fly" bird pendant  - WINNER C (and i don't use last names, but i will contact this person)

- (2 to be given away) THREE dozen cookies a month x4 months!  - WINNERS LAURA  and JOEL 

- dulce de leche cheesecake (locals only) - AMANDA

kari and her hubby completed their first adoption from china earlier this year, so clearly - this adoption is by faith (in more ways than one!).  they have to move quick, as "ebby" ages out in early 2014.

(a note: 100% of the money donated will go directly to kari for adoption expenses.  all prizes have been donated - as well as shipping of prizes to the winners.  give.  generously!) 

 AND -

read all about the story of kari and jim responding to god's call to adopt "ebby" HERE!

 

(approximately) 60 hours

it's been a busy 60 hours!  i'm always amazed by what we can cram in when we need to!

this week (july 2) is our 19th wedding anniversary!

woot!

good thing we like each other, right?

we had planned to sneak away overnight, but with our big kids going on a missions trip, we needed to go before our actual anniversary (more on their trip in a minute).

we enjoyed the drive (we always do!) and talked and planned for the next 5 years.  it was crazy, really...  it was not at all what i wanted our plan to look like, but we both agreed that this is where god is leading us and we simply get to be obedient.  we also know that god can (and sometimes does) change the plan, so we are flexible.

once we arrived at our hotel, we made casual dinner plans and grabbed some cheesecake for later.  we also stopped at trader joe's because we're awesome like that.

(it was approximately 105 degrees - which was quite reminiscent of our wedding day.  ugh!)

the next morning, we had the opportunity to head to camp and pick up our amy and the other campers and transport them back home.  we used our map app on our phones to get to camp.  i could tell this was not the way i've driven to camp before...

i was pretty sure we were close, but SERIOUSLY! this was more adventure than i was really ready for - in the church van!  about 15 minutes after this pic was taken, we snuck up to the campground - from the back way ;-)

we had a van full of girls.  i'll take that.  mostly quiet with giggles and a few random camp songs thrown in for good measure.

we had about 36 hours with all 6 kiddos home.  we tried to maximize the time together - all while getting ash and austin prepared for their missions trip.  working in the kitchen keeps me central to all the kids and needs, so i decided to whip up some bierocks!

i think i need a raise!  they were AMAZING!  (not to brag or anything)

since the older two will be gone on independence day, we celebrated with fireworks at our house after dinner last night.  austin loves to watch his money burn (geez...), so he entertained us with his pyrotechnics.

this morning - at the blessed hour of 5 a.m., my big kids were off.  

again.

gosh.  i already miss them.

they're working on an indian reservation in south dakota this week with their youth group.  i'm excited for them to have many cross cultural opportunities - both here and internationally.  thankful for this opportunity for them.

but, i miss them...

so, another week with the youngest 4.  it's busy with holidays, anniversary, anna's 6th gotcha day and more!  it'll be awesome!

saturday

it's saturday.

last night, all was right with my world.  my three olders were home from camp and my youngers joined them around the table to hear stories:

i cried.

even looking at this picture makes me cry.  see that in the lower right hand corner?  

a globe.

the heart of everyone in our family for that globe (or more importantly, for the nations on that globe) will get in between us at some point in the future.

i just know it.

so last night, i just pondered it all in my heart and it brought tears.

today is saturday.

and that same globe just keeps getting in the way.

today we said goodbye to some dear friends.  10 years.  dreams.  moves.  jobs.  adoptions.

when i see that globe i think of seeing the world the way god sees the world.

and

when you see the world through those eyes,

everything changes.

a move to a far off place doesn't seem quite so crazy...

blessings, darrel and gail; noah, lily and jude.

that darn globe just gets in the way...

 

the rest of this week

we are currently waiting on the three olders to get home from camp.  they should have been home by now, but one of the vans (the one that austin is riding in) has blown a tire.

twice.

austin thought it was fun.  i think teenage boys are crazy.

ETA is closer pushed back 3 hours and my heart is longing to hold them...

*****

not every moment of every day is scheduled:

that would be incredibly boring and not at all fun!  i love watching these three play together.  such a mixutre of cars and pretend play!  it's a hoot to listen to!

we went on our walking wednesday and fed the ducks and geese the other day:

after that, i took the kids swimming at our friend's house.  after swimming and sunning, i got to leave alone...

i went home and got gussied up for date night!  chris and i went to dinner at a fun caribbean place in town and then came home to watch a movie and enjoy a night in.

we didn't even pick up toys!

*****

my heart and soul are in a crazy place right now.

i'm so excited about what i know god is doing around me!  and i can't wait to see how i fit into his plan!

i'm also grieving.  two of our very closest friends are moving in the next few weeks.  both are going into ministry.  i'm so happy that they are following god's call on their lives, but MAN this is hard...

hard to be the one not going.

hard to feel like all our like-minded friends - the ones we linked arms with - are gone.

trusting today that there are many more like-minded people here; i just need to find them and link arms with them and dream big dreams with them!  there is still plenty of work left to be done...

these three

ashleigh is still at camp couseling.

austin and aubrie joined her for junior high camp.

so this week, it's just these three:

it's so weird!

we can all load up in the toyota!  bertha (our suburban) feels a little neglected.

only 5 plates at dinner.

and the best part?  they are all in bed by 8:30 or 9:00!  woo hoo!

***** 

we are missing the older three, though.

aubrie wasn't so sure she wanted to go to camp.  rather last minute, the tears started rolling...  i turned to my friend, paige, and said "WHY is she crying?!  she went last year with no tears!".  paige - so wise - responded "she didn't have those same emotions a year ago!". 

wow.  she was so right.  progress!  she was really going to MISS us!  praise the LORD!

a quick pic with her friend and then into the van:

here's hoping it's a great week for aubrie - and austin and ashleigh, too!  can't wait til they are home on friday!!!

 

amy and lily

oh, my...

these two.

sweet girls.  born on two continents.  a story that ties them together before they ever held hands or giggled with each other.

lily and her family are moving away soon...

i can admit that i am overly emotional about the whole thing.  when god put the vision of a little girl from china in my heart, i envisioned these two being buddies...  seeing them together reminds me that god keeps his promises.  my little amy carmichael and her red headed friend.

walking wednesday

our summer schedule is pretty simple.  but, it's a schedule - which means my kids have some predictability.  they thrive on that.  and when my kids are thriving, life is easier for me.

ahem.

motor mondays.

serving tuesdays.

walking wednesdays.

artsy-fartsy thursdays.

free fridays.

a little theme goes a long way in giving things for my kids to look forward to.

yesterday was walking wednesday.

5 walking buddies + me went on a little walk on a local walking trail.  the kids have been there, but i had not.  it was totally a blast!

maybe not the most stellar picture, but here's my crew:

we followed up our little walk with a picnic lunch.  the kids weren't all that impressed by the bugs that decided to invade our al fresco dining, so there was plenty of whining and itching.

i have several other walking adventures planned for the summer.  some close.  some far.  all free.  we do love that word: free.