An Easter morning message

This morning, before heading to church, we picked up our Sunday morning donuts and dropped them off by the fire station since Mr. Jeremy was on shift.  We wanted to thank them for all that they do, especially for working on Easter Sunday.   Henry asked lots of questions, climbed in and out of the fire trucks; I think we were there about 20 minutes.  As Henry was climbing in the car to leave, a man walked up with a gas can, asking if any of us knew where to get diesel.  Jeremy told him where he thought the closest station with diesel was, and the man replied "Ok, I gotta find diesel. I don't want to be late for church."  My gut told me that this man needed our help.  I asked Mike if we could give him a ride and I'm pretty sure he thought I'd lost my mind, giving a stranger a ride, especially with our son in the car.  Not being prejudice, but this guy wasn't a helpless old lady.  He looked like an old motorcycle guy,  shaved head and a long beard.   I told Mike, "It's Easter and he's trying to get to church."  The 4 of us piled in the car and the man introduces himself to Henry first. He said his name was Shawn and then he asked Henry what his name was.  I thought it was pretty neat of him to talk to Henry. 

We stopped at the station and he filled up his little gas can and we headed back towards his truck.   As Mike was driving, Shawn said something to the effect that he doesn't let life make him mad.  We all have bad days and problems, it's all in how you react.  I told him that we learned in our foster licensing classes last week the acronym Q-TIP: Quit taking it personally.  He then told us that he and his brother were both adopted.  I was totally fascinated, not of him necessarily, but seeing God's work right in front of our eyes.  As he got out of the car, I told him "Happy Easter, I hope your day gets better" to which he replied "Oh I'm having a great day, just ran out of gas."  I had chills run up my spine as he walked to his truck.  Mike got out to help him, make sure he was able to get the truck started. 

By the time Mike got back in the car, I was crying happy tears.  I was so overwhelmed by the message and I wholeheartedly think that God wanted me to hear what this man believed.  See, last night after Henry was in bed, Mike gone to the races, I had a pity party.  I felt hurt and sad that my life didn't go the way I wanted, nothing like what I planned.  No longer will I ever have the chance to be pregnant again or experience the excitement as we waited for a baby to be born.  In that moment, I prayed for God to calm my heart, to guide me, to rid me of my selfishness.  None of this is about me or my plans.  It's about Him and His plan.  We are so excited about the journey of fostering and adoption, but the human side of me felt like a victim of an awful disease that in my tears, I felt like it had ruined my life.  After what felt like several minutes, I literally felt my body release the tension and I fell asleep.   God calmed me so that I could rest, but He gave me such a beautiful reminder this morning, grumbling doesn't change life or make it easier.  It's all in how you react to it.

Exciting news

In a post last month, I hinted that there was something exciting in on our horizon.  For nearly a year now (the seed was planted, not so coincidentally just 3 days after my first of two endometriosis surgeries last May), I felt like God was softening my heart to something I hadn’t considered for our family before.   Last year was incredibly tough, but we always felt like God was working on us, we just didn’t know how.     Mike and I knew that we wanted to grow our family but we also felt like there was something more.  I’m so excited to share with you our exciting news.  Today we took one of the first big steps towards our future – we submitted our application to become licensed foster parents!   

Our ultimate goals is for adoption, but also know that this can be a long and bumpy road. We’ve prayed like crazy,  talked with relatives and friends who have been there, done that, attended a few of the required classes, knocked out CPR and first aid and we are clearing out Henry’s toy room to make another bedroom.  Speaking of Henry, we introduced this idea to him about a month ago and he’s excited.   He didn’t quite understand that the baby/child wouldn’t come out of Mama’s tummy (this age comes with awkward questions and the never-ending fascination with pregnant bellies) but we delicately explained that sometimes families need a little extra help from families like ours.  God will use our family to help someone in need.  He was and still is very excited about being a good friend.  Every few days he will bring it up, telling us that he wants a brother and a sister.  The other night with outstretched arms, he told me “Mommy, I want a sister.  A really BIG one!”  I smiled and reminded him that God will decide who comes to our house someday.   He laughed and replied “Yes, and God will bring me a little brother too.”  My mind was thinking “tap the brakes, buddy.”  Then the very next day after leaving 5 hours of certification training, Mike said “Who knows what God will do in our lives.  Maybe we will have a baby, maybe we will have two kids in a bunk bed.”  Again,  I thought “tap the brakes.”  My brain says that we only want one kid at a time, but then I’m reminded by the Holy Spirit to “Let go and let God.”  He’s so much bigger than anything Mike and I could ever imagine for ourselves, for our family.  We are so thankful for God’s provision in our lives and we are humbled that He chose this path for us.

We hope that you will share in our excitement and prayers in the days (weeks, months, years) ahead.   

Flashback Friday - My Chair

For Henry's 1st birthday, Nana and Papa got him his own chair, with his name on it and everything.   He loved it!

Well until you put Livie in it....

"What's with this kid?"

 

"Dude, what's your deal?"

Gah, that bottom lip!

"This kid, he's a crybaby!" 

Henry, your cry-face is pathetic.

 

And then here's a great big cheese face after Livie was removed from the premises.

 

He really loves her now, but he wasn't so sure about having to share the limelight with her in the beginning. 

Flashback Friday - Eileen's Adoption Day

This picture is from Eileen's Adoption Day - April 4, 2009

 

I can't believe she's been gone longer than we had her in our lives.  This girl was a hot mess with only 3 legs, overweight and did things that good behaving dogs wouldn't even think about.  She also had a heart and a spirit both bigger than life.  I can't say enough good things about this sweet soul.  So thankful that she was a part of our lives, if even for just a little while.