Newly Painted Room

Here's the progression of our room. I don't have a picture of the old wall before the fireplace. We're lovin it. I need to get some color on that wall. Time to look for some kind of pop of color. Makes me want to decorate for Christmas.

adoption update

Well, we thought we'd try to go with the BabyFold, but they were jerks, so we're sticking with Illini. We're just gonna have to get the paperwork straightened out and do the foot work to find a birth mom. We're pretty content with all that, so that's good. Perhaps we needed this little hiccup to remind us why we chose Illini in the first place.

hiccups with the Adoption Process

Well, we had some hiccups with the paperwork for the Adoption. Evidently we still have paperwork with the Baby Fold that is active and an Adopt Only License is pending. We can only be licensed with one agency and Illini is telling us we probably need to finish with Baby Fold because Illini has no birth moms (that's not a good sign). So we're trying to sort the whole mess out and figure out the easiest/best fix to this problem. We're also trying to not feel like the last seven months were wasted time in this process. We know God can use mix-ups too, this is just a little frustrating. We're not really sure what is going on and are waiting on phone calls to sort this all out.

Best case scenario... Baby Fold accepts Illini's home study (so we don't have to do that again) and finishes our "pending" license, gives us their training and puts us on a list.

Worst case scenario... we have to start all over with Baby Fold or fix things with the paper work with Illini and then be put in a drawer until they have a birth mom come through their doors.

We would appreciate some prayers for guidance in this mess.

It's been a while!

Wow. It's been a while since I blogged. It was a crazy busy summer. The last post was in June and so much has happened since then. We did a week of service in the community with the youth group, James did a week of fishing camp at little Galilee, I had two surgeries, we did VBS, went to NC for a week in August, and so much more. School started for both of us last month. James has two firefighting courses at Richland in Decatur to get his certification. (He volunteers in Wapella.) He is also starting Seminary by taking Hebrew, an intensive on Preaching the Parables, and an independant study on Jonathan Edwards/the Great Awakening. I officially passed my Thesis in August and am taking an internet class to finish my MA in Christian Education. Not my favorite thing to do.

This past week has been really busy as well. The Apple and Pork Festival was in Clinton and the church sells corn. It was rather chaotic getting all of that put together, but we made it. I started substitute teaching this year (in addition to taking care of Skye) to make some extra money. Hopefully it will pay for our new lazy-boys and our new bed. Then I'll be shopping for a new washer and dryer. So far I really like it. It's a good way to work part time doing different things and still have the flexibility to do things here at the church. So you could say that I'm back to having 3 jobs: Secretary at Church (very part time), Nanny for Skye (part time), and Substitute Teacher (part time). I also decided to do two sessions of Bible Study this fall. We have one on Monday Nights and one Tuesday Mornings. Both are going well. We are doing a study by Carol Kent (carolkent.org) entitled Becoming a Woman of Influence. So far, it's a really good study.

It may seem like we have a lot going on. We do. BUT we finally were able to hire a part time youth minister. We hired Tim Barbee just in time to start youth group stuff up. He is doing a great job and the weight of doing it all has been lifted and we feel great. It's good to be able to focus on areas we are truely gifted in. We still go to the youth events because we love the kids, but it's so nice to not have to plan everything and run everything.

Yesterday I subbed at Washington for a couple kindergarten classes. I took care of the kids, while the teachers tested their math skills. They wear me out by the end of the day. I'll do it again tomorrow. It's nice to have today to relax and catch my breath. Thursday and Friday we'll be in Rockford. Joanna and Dave are coming for a visit and we get to go see my new little niece. She'll be 1 month old on Thrusday. It's so much fun. I really can't believe my brother is a dad. Scary! We've got our homestudy done and are on a couple of waiting lists for adoption. We continue to pray for God's timing. It is perfect even when I don't understand it.

That should do it for now. I have posted lots of pictures to facebook of summer events. Most of you who read this are also on facebook. Be sure to check them out. I'll try and get back in the habit of updating this. It's easier to type more here, than on facebook. We'll see how it goes. Later alligators!

the surgery

Well, the surgery went well and I've been home for 2 hours. But Dr. Nord did not have good news for us. The outlook isn't too good. He said that we need to get preg in the next few months or it looks like our only other option is in vitro fertilization. The endometriosis is stage three (of 4) and Dr. Nord said my tubes are too tired from the endo and that they aren't able to get the egg into the tube to be fertilized and then into the uterus to implant. He likened it to trying to use your arm after your arm has been injured and it just doesn't work like its supposed too. He also said that eventually I'll probably end up having to have a hysterectomy after we are done having kids because the endometriosis grows so quickly. Evidently mild and endometriosis does not apply to me. He said that endometriosis really likes me. We'll see what happens in the next few months. Thanks for the prayers, keep them coming.

Cedarly Retreat

Many of you know that last week we went to a place in Wisconsin called Cedarly for a retreat. I can't count how many people have called it a vacation. It was not vacation, it was retreat. Many times we go on vacation and come home to get a break from the chaos of vacation. This was not vacation. We spent so much time in prayer and seeking God. Two things not often done on vacation. The retreat center is on lake front property and has quite a history. It's been a retreat center for ministers since the late 90s. There were five other couples there with us. All of us had such unique stories. We enjoyed every one of them. It was an amazing week of making new friends, eating fantastic food, spending time with James, and most importantly seeking out God's will. It was so peaceful. The only time we drove off the property was to make a quick run to walmart. We biked and walked. We went to a prayer service at an Episcopal Seminary that was just up the road. We canoed in the lake. I caught a couple of fish. The lake water was so clean you could see right to the bottom through most of the lake. Amazing! There was no tv, no computers, and no phones.

This is the prayer house or Wood Shed as they call it. It's a one room log cabin style house with a wood burning stove in the corner. Many pastors from the area rent it out for free most days, but there were a couple of days no one had it rented so we could use it. James and I spent most of Monday morning reading and praying in there.

Here are some pictures of the house. There was a wrap around screened in porch, sitting room, library, entryway, dinning room, and more sitting areas. The dining room had to be my favorite place. All fourteen of us sat at the table and ate most of our meals together. One meal a day (monday through friday) was prepared by a chef. He was quite a chef. Mike made us some amazing gourmet meals. Steak and Potatoes, Apricot salsa chicken, pistachio glazed salmon. I seriously gain 4 or 5 pounds last week. The other meals were served buffet style, but they were yummy and we usually ate them together as well. We didn't have to lift a finger to clean a thing. There was also a bottomless jar of "pastor power pills" (peanut m&ms) that we made sure we ate plenty off.

Most of the time we spent doing what you see here. We enjoyed the peace and quiet and came home rested and ready to go.

If I think of anything more, I'll write later. I've got to go to bed now. Been a long day. Tomorrow morning I have to have some minor surgery to clean out all that endometriosis that has probably come back. Yuck! So much for peace and quiet! I'll let you know how it goes.

piles and piles and more piles

There's not a whole lot to update this week. No drama in our lives which is a good thing. We've got dinner at one of the elder's houses tonight, a baptism tomorrow, and we're getting ready to head off to our retreat in WI Sunday afternoon. James brother is running a marathon out in San Diego on Sunday. Can't wait to hear about that. James is out on the front porch working on his sermon...at least he was until his butt fell asleep in the chair. I made bagel chips this morning and need to get off my butt and clean the house this afternoon so we can come home to a clean house next Friday. I guess I always remember Mom wanting to have a mostly clean house when we came home from a vacation. It's like getting into a nice warm clean bed at the end of a long day. Speaking of which...I need to change the sheets on the bed. I've got lots of work to do. There are piles on the kitchen and dining room tables, and more piles of clothes to be washed and folded and piles of dishes to be washed and put away. I know...me...piles...never!!! I love my piles. James hates my piles. Such is life.