A Decade Old

How can it be that my sweet daugher Emma is already ten?? She had this momentous birthday back in April and I think that part of me didn't blog about it back then because I still couldn't quite get my head around it. I know that I have two children older than she is but because they came into our family when they were nine and almost eight I guess it doesn't seem the same. But with Emma I can't quite figure out where the time went. Why just a minute ago I was feeding her baby food with a tiny spoon and chasing after her as she was toddling around getting into mischief. Now she is wearing a size seven ladies shoe and teaching her younger brother and sister about Christ as well as reading all the books I read to her to them. She is independant and stubborn at times and I see my faults in her so clearly sometimes. But two of the most amazing things about her are her simple love for Jesus and what an amazing big sister she has turned out to be. I was watching her the other day at the YMCA pool. She spent most of her time in the small activity pool with Daniel and Ana playing and playing with them. Either helping to teach Daniel to not fear the water or following Ana down the slide laughing and giggling with glee. She is still a little girl at heart but I see a maturity in her that sometimes scares me. I know that there are so many things that will happen with her in the next ten years and part of me just wants to slow down time just a little so that I don't miss any of it.

There have been so many blessings that have come from adopting our children from Russia. But one of the most unexpected ones is the person that Emma has become because of her brothers and her sister. She is much more adventurous than I believe she would have been with no brothers and she is far more giving and compassionate. God has blessed us so greatly with this loving and faithful daughter and I am one thankful mom to have her in my life.

Snow Adventures, Puppy Adventures, Zoo, Garage and Grand Adventures

Time flies when you are having so many adventures!! We have had our share over the past couple of months. In February we had our first real snow since the boys have been home. Wouldn't you know it, it was when Robert was in Phoenix for a conference so he missed all the fun. But it was a doozie of a storm that left us with more than a couple inches of snow and enough for even us homeschoolers to call a snow day. The kids had a blast playing and throwing snow balls. Then they joined me inside for a relaxing day of movies and hot chocolate...no school allowed.

James was especially thrilled. He has been waiting for a good snow since he arrived from Siberia three years ago. This is his wonderful snow man that he worked all morning to get just right. He was so proud and was sad to watch him melt which happened before days end. Such is life in Arizona where the snow doesn't stay long!!

Our next adventure began around the same time as the snow. This is our precious new chocolate lab Hershey. He is curious, fun loving and all puppy for sure. And he loves to give Hershey kisses :) He joined the gang in February as well and has become part of the family very quickly. One thing about having five pairs of eyes to watch over a puppy he doesn't get away with much. He has trained very quickly and loves all his people. The only down fall to this dog so far is that he is a morning dog. When the sun comes up he thinks it is time to PLAY! Which doesn't go over so well with this non-morning girl. But we are working on it!! Hopefully I can get him to come around to my way of thinking...sleeping in is good Hershey!!

The beginning of March found us off to the Phoenix Zoo on a homeschool field trip. Our dear friends hopped in the silver streak with us and we made a day of it. The kiddos had a blast and us moms got some exercise. We even took a side trip out for an awesome lunch and a trip to Fashion Square. Why waste a perfectly good trip to Phoenix I say!!

My man has been hard at work on his adventure in his new garage. In the last few months he has put on the trusses (thank you friends that helped), had our friend from church roof it (in a day...yippee), get all the electrical done, and hang almost all the drywall on the ceiling. He has done an awesome job and I'm so proud of him. The boys have been fantastic helpers as well and are learning so much from their dad.

Our latest adventure was truly Grand!! Our friends who we visited in Virginia last year and who will be moving there permanently this week invited us to tour the Grand Canyon with them. It was a special day to celebrate their son's birthday and just have sweet fellowship. We will miss them terribly when they go but are looking forward to future adventures with them. Who knows all the things we have yet to see!!

As spring approaches we realize once again how blessed we are. The Lord has allowed us to have so much fun together in 2009, enjoying the beauty of His creation.

Eleven Already!!

There are times that I can still hardly believe that I have an eleven year old son...not to mention a 12 year old son!!! When you get them already half grown it seems like time passes all the more quickly and you have to be careful to catch the moments quick because you blink and three years have passed. I am posting these photos of Mr. Peter's birthday several weeks late but I wanted to share some of the fun we had during his party. Having your birthday on December 28th has its challenges. Especially when you are the mom :) but we did our best this year to let Peter know he is loved and such a special part of our family. Peter is my little imp, we knew from the moment we saw his photo that this would be his personality. He is so very creative, loves anything to do with the military, can build just about anything and is a budding artist. He keeps me on my toes everyday but his smile makes my heart melt. His theme this year was Army stuff and between Christmas and his birthday he managed to get just about everything a boy could want or need to "do battle" including a real Army phone, a full camo outfit, army shovel and ruck sack. He loves to suit up in all of it and head to the back yard to dig trenches and battle with his brothers. Here are some of the photos from his party at the Hampton Inn. We had fun having "camo" cake and then heading to the indoor pool for fun swimming with friends.

The Whole Gang after swimming...they all slept well
I think this picture says it all!

Mr. Peter with his camo cake!

My Little Imp!!

P.S. When I first posted this the photos didn't load right and this time they are not in the right order, but I'm choosing to just leave them and move on :)

Yesterday, Tomorrow, and Today

Sunday after everyone left and we had returned from Church I headed out for a little breather to the Christian Bookstore to browse around a little by myself :) I decided to purchase a new devotional for the New Year so I picked out Oswald Chamber's My Utmost For His Highest. It is one that I had looked at before but never bought. I have read it the last few days and have already been blessed by these words written so many years ago but even so they seem like they were written just for me.

Today's was entitled Yesterday...as we finish 2008 and embark on the adventures of 2009 I want to share what Chambers has to say and hopefully it will strike you as it struck me.

"You shall not go out with haste...for the Lord will go before you, and the God of Israel will be your rear guard" Isaiah 52:12

"Security from Yesterday. "God requires an account of what is past" (Ecclesiastes 3:15). At the end of the year we turn with eagerness to all that God has for the future, and yet anxiety is apt to arise when we remember our yesterdays. Our present enjoyment of God's grace tends to be lessened by the memory of yesterday's sins and blunders. But God is the God of our yesterdays, and He allows the memory of them to turn the past into a ministry of spiritual growth for our future. God reminds us of the past to protect us from a very shallow security in the present."

"Security for Tomorrow. "...the Lord will go before you..." This is a gracious revelation-that God will send His forces out where we have failed to do so. He will keep watch so that we will not be tripped up again by the same failures, as would undoubtedly happen if He were not our "rear guard." And God's hand reaches back to the past, settling all the claims against our conscience."

"Security for Today. "You shall not go out with haste..." As we go forth into the coming year, let it not be in haste of impetuous, forgetful delight, nor with the quickness of impulsive thoughtlessness. But let us go out with the patient power of knowing that the God of Israel will go before us. It is true that we have lost opportunities that will never return, but God can transform this destructive anxiety into a constructive thoughtfulness for the future. Let the past rest, but let it rest in the sweet embrace of Christ. Leave the broken, irreversible past in His hands, and step out into the invincible future with Him."

I love that He is my rear guard as well as the one that goes before me. I know as I look back on 2008 I have made my share of mistakes and blunders but I also know that I'm forgiven...I take heart in this as 2009 begins! Happy New Year!!

Merry Christmas

Well the 24th has finally arrived and I have managed to get everything prepared for our Christmas celebration. The last few weeks and days have been filled with times spent with good friends, lots of laughter and really not a whole lot of stress. I was feeling it a bit earlier today as I rushed out to buy one last minute gift but over all this has been a very peaceful preparation time for Christmas. As we prepare to celebrate the Lord's birth I am filled thankgiving for all that this year has meant to our family. It has been a year filled with memory making and as we gather together tonight and tomorrow I'm feeling peace about what we have accomplished in the recent weeks and all this year. I pray that as you celebrate with your families that you will remember the meaning of the season and feel the peace that surpasses all understanding that our Lord offers. Merry Christmas!!

Purposeful Preparation

As we are preparing for Christmas I am trying to keep in perspective the reason for this season and not get too stressed in the process. Staying focused on finishing my Bible study and spending time in prayer has helped a great deal. I just finished another wonderful Beth Moore study with my Bible study girls and it was truly awesome. It was all about the Psalms of Ascent which I had never even heard of before but they are the grouping of Psalms from Psalm 120-134. They were written as songs that the Israelites would sing as they made their yearly pilgrimages to the feasts in Jerusalem. Within this group is a Psalm that I have always held dear but it became even more dear to me after studying it more and it is one that I will cling to throughout this season to help me stay grounded in what is truly important during these busy days.

Psalm 127
Unless the Lord builds a house its builders labor over it in vain; unless the Lord watches over a city, the watchman stays alert in vain. In vain you get up early and stay up late, eating food
earned by hard work; certainly He gives sleep to the one He loves. Sons are indeed a heritage from the Lord, children, a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the sons born in
one's youth. Happy is the man who has filled his quiver with them. Such men will never be put to shame when they speak with their enemies at the city gate.

I love that God wants me to get sleep!! That was such a revelation to me when studying this Psalm. Many times I get so caught up in all the things to do, especially at this time of year that I forget to rest and I forget that God wants me to rest. The other part of this psalm that I truly love is the part about my children being a Heritage from the Lord. I need to remind myself of that from time to time as well. When I get frustrated with behaviors or caught up in the busyness of getting school accomplished it is easy for me to forget what a blessing they truly are to my life. And my quiver is truly full with arrows for serving Jesus. I need to also remember to always build my house on the firm foundation of Christ so that I am not laboring in vain.

In the last session Beth talks about laying down things that we think are necessary but are not necessarily what God wants us to be doing. This is something that over the last year I have actually worked very hard to do. I know that I still could use some work on this but I'm pleased to say that He has taught me to pray much more fervently before I take something new on, and to make sure that it is really His will and not my own. My prayer for all of you that read this blog is that you would take the time to evaluate the "things" in your life that take up your time and be prayerful about whether or not they are truly what God wants for you. In the coming weeks as we prepare for Christmas I want to be purposeful about the things we choose to do and remember as the days pass why we celebrate this holiday we call Christmas, I hope I can pass some of that on to my quiver in the process!!

Lessons from Computer Land

Over the past week I have learned just how much I have come to rely on the technology that is my computer! I entered the realm of technology slowly and with some trepidation. I don't know if I was resisting change or just being stubborn but apparently I may on to have been on to something, perhaps. Anyway...this week we found out that our computer had over 140 viruses on it, yippee. I have known for the past few months that something was not quite right on my computer but I had no idea that it was this bad. Anyway the folks at the local computer store assured Robert that they could rectify this problem quickly and efficiently, isn't that what they always say?? That was Saturday, by Monday my computer was back on my desk ready to roll right??? Alas no, when we pulled up the email I discovered that everything in my contacts on outlook (that is every address, phone number and email that I have saved) and all of my old saved emails were you guessed it, GONE! This made my heart very sad and being the understanding husband that he is made Robert very testy. Back to the computer store he marched where they once again assured him that they would quickly and efficiently be able to restore this problem and I would get my stuff back. That was Monday...fast forward to Friday, apparently it took longer than they thought. I call Robert to find out if he will be home soon and he sounds kinda funny. I ask what's going on?? He says I'm picking up the computer, I'll call you right back. I sense, all is not well at the big box electronic store. He never did call me back I think he was prolonging the inevitable friction that he knew was going to ensue. See apparently they are not nearly as crafty and efficient at the store, and even after reinfecting my computer and trying to restore all of my data alas that was not possible! All is lost...thank you so much cleaver hackers and virus engineers you got me good!!

I am still sad and not looking forward to collecting and restoring my address book but I'm coming around to the fact that there is a reason for everything and perhaps God is trying to teach me a lesson. Maybe I have gotten a little too comfy around my technology and have spent a bit too much time in the vortex which is the internet. Perhaps I am to teach you all a lesson about making back up copies of contact files and printing out emails that have fun recipes instead of assuming they will always be there. Or maybe He is just longing for me to remember that all things on this earth are temporary and if I'm going to put my trust in something it should be Him. Whatever the reason I'm sure it is for my own good right??