Sunday's at Sharon's

Matt's mom is named Sharon and his dad is John (Johns dad was named John and John and Sharon named their first son John who in turn named his first son John.....do we see a pattern here :)- I actually call her mom (Matt's family is Dutch- in the Dutch families it is traditional for the in-laws to call the parents mom and dad)- We don't spend every Sunday out at Matt's parents but try to get out there at least a couple Sunday's a month- They live on 5 acres with one side of their property boarding a creek- In the summer you will find my boys down at the creek with their cousins and in the winter they play outside doing who know's what- I noticed that Ryan packed his BB gun today when we went out-  It was cute to see him shooting up in the tree wearing some barn boots that he must have found in mom and dad's garage (we had snow in Oregon today!!)- It was fun taking pictures of our day today-

The snow started just before Matt's parents house

Elle's first snow (so she doesnt' look the happiest- I laughed when I saw this pic)

Mom

:)

And the snow ball fights started

If you look close you can see the snow ball in the air- right after I snapped
this pic the snow ball hit Ryan smack in the face!! Good throw Jess (Eli and Ryan's cousin)

Cousin Kate......I love you Kate

Matt's dad John

Sister in law Heidy

Beautiful Lydia

27 Weeks 1 Day and 618 E-Mail's

Below is every e-mail that transpired while we were going through our adoption.......There are 618 total that transpired between Attorney's, Social Workers and me- The majority are between Attorney's and me (or is it Attorney's and I?).  As we were going through our adoption process I saved them in 'drafts' in my e-mail and finally printed them all off today...........HOLY COW ......WOW....It's A LOT of paper!!

Our adoption, from the first call we got from our attorney telling us about Elle's birth mom Heather to the day it finalized was 27 weeks and 1 day- I have been trying to decide how to explain all that went on with our finalization- Honestly it is somewhat traumatizing (nothing to do with our precious Elle's- just the legal aspect) and I am still trying to process it all in my brain- Just as soon as I process it all I will blog about it!

I hope you all have a great weekend :)

Our Adoption Finalized!!

This is just a quick post for any blog reader that I am not friends with on facebook- I posted this status a couple hours ago:

At 1:41 p.m. Pacific Standard Time (10:41 Hawaiian Standard Time)- With Matt standing before Honorable Judge Acoba in Kauai and me sitting in front of a Notary here in Oregon OUR ADOPTION FINALIZED!!!!!!!!!!! Praise God!!! I will blog about it later :)


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I can hardly wait to blog the story- at this point I am completely exhausted and my brain feels a bit frazzled (totally grateful and excited at our finalization but it has been a LONG 3 days).........Thank you so much for all of your thoughts, prayers, and support- Will be blogging again soon

Elle's- Here you are on your adoption finalization day- my poor girl.......you were not
feeling so hot- Daddy, your Bubby's, and I  love you so much and thank God
for you........you are cherished and adored sweetie

Judging Others- Getting A Dose Of My Own Medicine... ICKY :(-

Judging Others................In the past, I have been the queen of it- I've summed up another's situation and sized it to 'what I determined it is' and then judged- I might not have always spoken what was on my mind but never the less I was still thinking it.  What sticks out in my mind the most is my pride- If I did not understand what another person was going through, or if they were not handling their situation the way I would or in a way that was relatable, I would judge them- I am not talking about the blatant wrong things in life- the things that are morally unacceptable that need to be judged and then action needs to be taken- I'm talking about simple life situations...........
Over the past two and a half years the Lord has called our family out of almost every comfort zone we have ever known- along with calling us out of our comfort zone, a lot of our life has been lived 'out loud'- meaning we allowed other's to experience our transitions with us- While living in Hawaii we had over 200 visitors in the span of 26 months- These precious people (thank you so much to each and every person that took the time to come visit) were able to see an up close and personal view of what our family was all about- no facade, no pretense, no frills- Just us living life the best we knew how- definitely not perfect.........but definitely with passion and love for each other-
Along with all of the above we were given an INCREDIBLE opportunity to pursue adopting our Ellie- we have been asked to 'live out loud' for the State of Georgia, the State of Oregon, and the State of Hawaii-  several AMAZING social workers, five attorney's (I know I have said this before but 4 GREAT attorneys and 1 not so great), our birth mom Heather, a wonderful hospital staff, a delivery doctor, all of our friends and family, people that have no clue who we are but have heard about our adoption story, church family, and the list could go on-
Again, this has all been an INCREDIBLE, AMAZING, GOD BREATHED opportunity......but it has also been humbling- humbling because our life has been out there for inspection- the feeling of vulnerability has been huge- I would be lying if I did not say there has also been hard ship, stress, and strain.
My heart goes out to the people who have or are in Matt and my shoes right now- who are doing the  best they can with the situations they have been given- The people who just need cheer leaders cheering them on and not judges- The people who feel so vulnerable...........
Going back to my first sentence of this post........Judging Others- I have been given yet another amazing opportunity to learn........
Like I wrote a couple of weeks ago about our Adoption Finalization- we have had some detours- detours that seem to just keep on coming our way.........In our case, and I believe a lot of other's situations (not necessarily adoption related just life situations)- a detour just gives God more room to work- It give's HIM more room to show His control in a situation and His creativity- It also gives the people like Matt and I more room to trust and have faith in God's sovereign control!
I speak for myself when I acknowledge that I definitely will be more sensitive to other's situations-I personally have had so many people come along side and encourage, cheer on, pray, etc... I have also experienced people, that I know have good intentions but no compassion, who have judged- people that are quick to point out what they believe we are doing wrong (the few people that have done this have never experienced any of our life situations- but seem to have all the answers.........I can think of SEVERAL situations where I have done just what they have done- oh believe you me there is nothin' like getting a bit of your own medicine to give you a wake up call :).  Thank goodness it has been only a few- just enough to wake me up to my own judgments I have passed on people and just enough to make me want to blog about where I personally am with judging!

'Heavenly Father I ask that you help me to be a woman who loves before I judge, a woman who shows sensitivity and compassion to situations I might not understand and who shows humility before pride.......I love you Lord Jesus and thank you for this opportunity to grow.'

I love you Eli Ben!! (Was dressed to go hunting with Eli- My little
brother ended up taking him.....kind of fun wearing camo and army boots for a bit)

Baby Food!!

Ellie has been eating rice cereal for about a month- Last night Matt ran by our local grocery store and picked up sweet potatoes and bananas- We started with the potatoes- she ate 3/4 of the jar :)
P.S. Note to self- Use a bib next time we feed Ellie baby food!

Mascaras and Magazines

I have consistently read 3 magazines, front to back, for years: Home Life, Taste of Home (Thank you mom so much for the subscription every Christmas), and Real Simple- I  bought Real Simple at the airport last week as a distraction from feeling sick- A couple of nights ago I could not sleep so I grabbed it and started reading- Pg. 93 reads:

"Road Test Mascaras- Real Simple staffers tried out more than 100 of the latest and greatest lash enhancers. These nine did the trick."


I talked about Mascara in THIS blog post (just ran out of 'Falsie' mascara) and am ready to try something new again- Falsie worked out great (Thanks Victoria for the recommendation)- I was toooo impatient to 'season' the Falsie brush (I like to have a rough, caked with mascara brush immediately and do not want to start fresh with a clean brush that you have to put on a zillion coats of mascara to make it look like you are wearing it- I would dip my 'seasoned' Mary Kay brush into the Falsie Mascara- Yes I know I did not get the full Falsie affect BUT my impatience got the better of me)

Back to Real Simple and their Mascara experiment- Here is what they said (I am getting ready to order Diorshow from e-bay because it is $4. cheaper than from dior.com)........................
-BEST LENGTHENER: Sephora Full Action Extreme Effect Mascara- $15., sephora.com
-BEST VOLUMIZER: Cover Girl Lash Blast Volume Mascara $9., at drugstores
-BEST WAND: Benefit They're Real! $22., benefitcosmetics.com
-BEST CURLING: Diorshow Mascara $24.50 dior.com- you should see the brush- it looks amazing!
-BEST TINT: Hourglass Film Noir Lash Lacquer $28., sephora.com
-BEST FALL COLOR: Le Metier de Beaute' Anamorphic Lash in Aubergine $34., nordstrom.com
-LONGEST WEARING: Cle' de Peau Beauty the Mascara $50., saks.com (I would love to try this)
-MOST INNOVATIVE: Ojon Restroative Lash Treatment and Mascara $21., qvc.com
-BEST ALL-NATURAL: Tarte Gifted Amazonian Clay Smart Mascara $19., sephora.com

Hope your Sun. is FANTASTIC :)

Testing Fences & Treva

A few weeks back my friend Treva sent me a Link to a daily online devotional- This devotional is sent to my inbox every morning- sometimes the Title catches my eye and I click 'open'- other times the day gets away from me and the day's devotion ends up in my deleted unopened.
Today's title caught my eye and I opened it- I'm so glad I did because it spoke right to my heart- Appreciating the boundaries in my life has been a struggle.......................to trust that God has everything under control- even when things are not going my way........To trust the boundaries He has set up in my life..........I feel Him whispering in my ear "have faith daughter.........HAVE FAITH."

Thank you so much Tre'ba for sending this link- Your life is such an encouragement to me and your joy and love for the Lord is a total inspiration!! I love you friend..............muah!!!

Testing Fences 21 Oct 2011 October 21, 2011 Testing Fences Marybeth Whalen Each morning when I let my dog out he does a lap around the perimeter  of our yard and then comes back to ram his body against the gate, just  to see if he can get out of the confinement we’ve put him in. He looks  over at me as he does it, as if to say, “Just checking.” The other morning  I was laughing about what a silly dog he is. Then it occurred to me that  I am not that different from him when it comes to the fences in my life. Like my dog, I have a Master who has constructed boundaries to keep  me safe. But I don’t always like those boundaries. I don’t understand  why they have to be there. Why can’t I just be free to roam where I  please, call my own shots, make my own decisions? Why must there  be fences to hem me in?  Like my dog, I am quick to forget that those  fences are there for my protection. And so I go around kicking them,  testing them, pushing against them instead of accepting them. Instead  of trusting, I just feel trapped. As I look back over my life, I can see many fences I’ve tested. When  God made me a mother, I questioned the position I’d landed in. Perhaps  I’d be better off somewhere else, doing something else. When God directed us to do whatever it took to get our finances under  control, I longed for the days when I could run free with my credit card. When marriage got really, really hard, I wondered if I was meant to be  bound to this one man forever. When God called me to homeschooling, I resisted being tied to my home  and children, slow to realize that God placed me there to teach me things  I could’ve never learned otherwise. As I’ve surveyed the path of my purpose, I’ve found myself wondering if  another path would be better—if I am truly where I am supposed to be. It seems I have struggled with every boundary, pushing against every fence God has ever erected in my life. Instead of seeing the place He puts  me as a reason for my safety, I dwell on how it inhibits me. I can see how those boundaries kept me in a place where He could reach  me.  And when the time came, I saw the benefits of those boundaries.  Through motherhood, I learned to be a servant. Through marriage  I learned to forgive and accept forgiveness. Through paying off debt, I  learned the blessings of financial freedom. Through homeschooling I  learned to lay down my agenda for His. I am a better person—and I know God better—through the boundaries in my life. Have you struggled with some boundaries of your own? Maybe today  you’re looking at the fences in your life and wanting to throw yourself  against them instead of seeing them as pleasant places and trusting  that within those confines waits your delightful inheritance. Maybe  you’ve forgotten that your Master erected those perimeters for your  good.  This morning a neighbor knocked at our door. My dog had pushed  against the fence and this time it had given way. He had escaped and  gone for a romp through our neighborhood, happy and free, oblivious to  the cars that could have hit him, the dog catcher who would be only too  happy to put him in the pound. The neighbor brought him back to me and I put him in the fence,  this time making sure the gate was securely latched. He still didn’t  understand the need for his fence. But I, his master, do. He just has to  trust that I have erected the fence for his safety, and dwell in his pleasant place.  Just like me.