Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
national adoption month
another year, another November...another chance to grow a moustache recognize National Adoption Month. and yet another time that i don't recall how i addressed this last year on this blog. oh well...no time to go sifting through the archives. if i'm repeating myself, it must be important....we are highlighting this at our church this week, so it seemed the perfect time to feature it here as well. because i'm so passionate about adoption and orphan care, i often wonder if people assume that i think everyone should adopt. believe it or not~ i don't! really, truly, adoption is not for everyone. i do, however, feel that every living breathing person with a beating heart should take up the cause to help care for those that need a voice, need a family, need to be loved. this, of course, can take on many different forms. and it just so happens there is something for everyone! :)
Isaiah 1:17 says "Learn to do right: seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless..."
how do i do this, you ask? easy peasy, lemon squeasy....here are ten ways you can care for an orphan and waiting child...(taken from Christian Alliance for Orphans orphan care Sunday site)
1. you can pray for them. (stick a waiting child's picture on your dashboard or fridge as a reminder)
2. speak up for them. (pass the word about waiting kids you might know of~ there are 30,000 right here in Canada)
3. provide for their needs. (give to a reputable orphanage. i know one! God's Littlest Angels in Haiti. volunteer with your local CAS)
4. support those who support them. (mow a lawn, babysit, offer a meal for foster parents. pray for them, offer encouragement)
5. protect them from harm. (become a foster parent or emergency foster parent)
6. visit them where they are. (go on a mission trip~ look into the eyes of an orphan)
7. give sacrificially to them. (support reputable organizations that are actively trying to alleviate the plight of the orphan and help "end the wait" for these children)
8. encourage them to press on. (sponsorship, letter writing)
9. adopt them into your family.
10. mobilize your church for them.
here are a few more links~ great resources and options available for anyone interested in lots of good information.
http://waitingtobelong.ca/
http://www.abbacanada.com/default.aspx
happy National Adoption Month!
Isaiah 1:17 says "Learn to do right: seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless..."
how do i do this, you ask? easy peasy, lemon squeasy....here are ten ways you can care for an orphan and waiting child...(taken from Christian Alliance for Orphans orphan care Sunday site)
1. you can pray for them. (stick a waiting child's picture on your dashboard or fridge as a reminder)
2. speak up for them. (pass the word about waiting kids you might know of~ there are 30,000 right here in Canada)
3. provide for their needs. (give to a reputable orphanage. i know one! God's Littlest Angels in Haiti. volunteer with your local CAS)
4. support those who support them. (mow a lawn, babysit, offer a meal for foster parents. pray for them, offer encouragement)
5. protect them from harm. (become a foster parent or emergency foster parent)
6. visit them where they are. (go on a mission trip~ look into the eyes of an orphan)
7. give sacrificially to them. (support reputable organizations that are actively trying to alleviate the plight of the orphan and help "end the wait" for these children)
8. encourage them to press on. (sponsorship, letter writing)
9. adopt them into your family.
10. mobilize your church for them.
here are a few more links~ great resources and options available for anyone interested in lots of good information.
http://waitingtobelong.ca/
http://www.abbacanada.com/default.aspx
happy National Adoption Month!
Thursday, November 15, 2012
i had a moment
i had a moment on Tuesday morning. the kind of moment you wish you could freeze-frame in your brain and forever remember the details that truly made it, well...."a moment". i didn't get to blogging that day (or even the next) to mark it in time, and i know that a select few of you were probably wondering where i'd gone...i should never have made myself so predictable....
anyway, i was standing by the coffee pot shortly after 7 am, sipping that first swallow of hot coffee. nothing like the first sip, is there? comforting delicious bliss that represents warmth, routine, sweetness, abundance, promise of the day ahead, and simply, "gezellig" goodness....so, yah...i was standing there, mostly awake and ready to tackle the day with coffee in hand. there were kids to get moving, to feed, and out the door for school.
enter~ AJ....little AJ in his blue "onesie" fleece pj's with covered feet and zippered front. he walked into the brightness of the kitchen with squinty eyes and hair matted in an upward position with flat, patted down sides. he must primarily sleep on his side. there's a certain way he holds his mouth with his teeth showing and upper lip and nose kind of scrunched up. he softly said "hi mom" and i simultaneously scooped him up into my arms. he wrapped his legs around my hips and we snuggled there for a moment. and it hit me. sometimes i miss those opportunities, i know i do. but that Tuesday, that moment i was 100% aware and present. i said out loud in my head (does that make sense?? :) well it does to me....) "what if i had missed this??" it is just so hard to imagine...for almost two years AJ has graced our family with his sweet spirit and funny ways. he fits. yet, just over two and a half years ago (and all the years before) i didn't even know of the three year old boy that was about to intersect our world in every way that is good. and only two years ago we were waiting on final paperwork to be processed to return to Ethiopia to bring him home.
so, the morning hug~ it was meaningful. it was a moment. i'm blessed.
anyway, i was standing by the coffee pot shortly after 7 am, sipping that first swallow of hot coffee. nothing like the first sip, is there? comforting delicious bliss that represents warmth, routine, sweetness, abundance, promise of the day ahead, and simply, "gezellig" goodness....so, yah...i was standing there, mostly awake and ready to tackle the day with coffee in hand. there were kids to get moving, to feed, and out the door for school.
enter~ AJ....little AJ in his blue "onesie" fleece pj's with covered feet and zippered front. he walked into the brightness of the kitchen with squinty eyes and hair matted in an upward position with flat, patted down sides. he must primarily sleep on his side. there's a certain way he holds his mouth with his teeth showing and upper lip and nose kind of scrunched up. he softly said "hi mom" and i simultaneously scooped him up into my arms. he wrapped his legs around my hips and we snuggled there for a moment. and it hit me. sometimes i miss those opportunities, i know i do. but that Tuesday, that moment i was 100% aware and present. i said out loud in my head (does that make sense?? :) well it does to me....) "what if i had missed this??" it is just so hard to imagine...for almost two years AJ has graced our family with his sweet spirit and funny ways. he fits. yet, just over two and a half years ago (and all the years before) i didn't even know of the three year old boy that was about to intersect our world in every way that is good. and only two years ago we were waiting on final paperwork to be processed to return to Ethiopia to bring him home.
so, the morning hug~ it was meaningful. it was a moment. i'm blessed.
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
lately
been busy around here lately....pumpkins, costumes, candy.
i love fall and always have, but am a lot less fond of Halloween. the volume of candy consumption, quite honestly, annoys me. possessing costume creativity for the little tricker-treaters in this family is never a strong point.
i'm happy when the 31st has come and gone. yet, even in saying all of that, it is always fun seeing their excitement~ to see them having real and silly fun. plus, the Reece's peanut butter cups my sweeties share with me help to soften my bad attitude a little as well....good thing....
one of the annual Halloween highlights for our crew is the wild and crazy church Harvest Party, followed by a trip to the house of a sweet couple, N&R. our kids also refer to Mrs. N as "the nice lady"~ because one who is generous with candy must be nice, right? :) beyond the candy, she really is a beautiful example of someone who truly understands and loves the joy of giving. every year she spoils our six (and even Jeff and I get a bag with something wonderful inside. who does that????) with personal and creative bags made up of Halloween treasures. this year the kids each got a bottle of Jones soda. this is special stuff. a real step up from the Kroger brand pop they are accustomed to. AJ just about flipped his lid with excitement as he consumed this the next evening during supper.
that's more than backwash, that's nearly half a hamburger bun in the neck of that bottle...not to mention the floaties in the remaining orange soda. gulp. feeling a bit nauseous here, and he's my son....
so, as the carved pumpkins find their final resting place among the compost pile, it is time to shift gears to the approaching holiday season. so much more worth celebrating, in my opinion. and very soon the sights and sounds of Christmas will be evident through our home....love it!!! might go dig out my CD's right now...
somehow it all comes together every year...
i'm happy when the 31st has come and gone. yet, even in saying all of that, it is always fun seeing their excitement~ to see them having real and silly fun. plus, the Reece's peanut butter cups my sweeties share with me help to soften my bad attitude a little as well....good thing....
one of the annual Halloween highlights for our crew is the wild and crazy church Harvest Party, followed by a trip to the house of a sweet couple, N&R. our kids also refer to Mrs. N as "the nice lady"~ because one who is generous with candy must be nice, right? :) beyond the candy, she really is a beautiful example of someone who truly understands and loves the joy of giving. every year she spoils our six (and even Jeff and I get a bag with something wonderful inside. who does that????) with personal and creative bags made up of Halloween treasures. this year the kids each got a bottle of Jones soda. this is special stuff. a real step up from the Kroger brand pop they are accustomed to. AJ just about flipped his lid with excitement as he consumed this the next evening during supper.
want a sip??? look closely, dear readers.....backwash much, AJ?
that's more than backwash, that's nearly half a hamburger bun in the neck of that bottle...not to mention the floaties in the remaining orange soda. gulp. feeling a bit nauseous here, and he's my son....
so, as the carved pumpkins find their final resting place among the compost pile, it is time to shift gears to the approaching holiday season. so much more worth celebrating, in my opinion. and very soon the sights and sounds of Christmas will be evident through our home....love it!!! might go dig out my CD's right now...
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