Thank you

Thank you, soldiers, for fighting for our freedom.
We are so very grateful for your incredible sacrifice.
And for the sacrifice of your families.
We know our freedom comes at a great price,
and we will not take that for granted.

family pets

Chrysanthemum Victoria. Yes, that is the name Kylee has chosen for her "pet moth". She loves every kind of animal, no matter how small, creepy, crawly, slimy, or squirmy. She won't smash an ant or spider, though she will replace their "home" if it is in a location undesirable to me. Moths, however, are meant to be kept, named and adored apparently.


And frogs too, of course. Remember this guy? Matthew Joseph. That's the name he got. I was able to convince the kids that to truly love Matthew Joseph they should let him go. He would much prefer to hop and wander on his own than to be kept in a bucket full of mud, grass and leaves. Tears were shed, but Matthew Joseph is now free.

Kylee's poems

Nature

Nature reminds me of
Trees standing tall
Baby animals growing
Horses rushing across the grass
Colorful rainbows in the sky
Butterflies flying in the garden
Sunlight shining on you
Flowers lying all around


Babies

Babies cry out loud.
Babies smile cute.
Babies are messy eaters.
Babies crawl all around.
Babies grow.
Babies snuggle sweet.
Bye bye babies,
hello kids.


Gymnastics

I love gymnastics.
I will never, ever quit
running,
vaulting,
jumping,
swinging high,
tumbling,
dancing,
twirling.
I LOVE gymnastics.

A day at the lake

her Defender is strong

This week, we were disheartened by the court's ruling in the future of our darling little girl - parents will get more time to "try" and our little girl will have more time to "wait and see". As I fumed and cried, I was gently reminded of God's great sovereignty. I opened up His word so that He could further remind me of His truth and promises to little ones such as these...

A father of the fatherless, a defender of widows... Psalm 68:5

He administers justice for the fatherless... Deuteronomy 10:17

The stranger and the fatherless and the widow may come and be satisfied... Deuteronomy 14:29

Seek justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan... Isaiah 1:17

Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless; maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed. Rescue the weak and needy, deliver them from the hand of the wicked... Psalm 82:3-4

Do not encroach on the fields of the fatherless, for their Defender is strong. He will take up their case against you... Proverbs 23:10-11


Their Defender is strong... her Defender is strong. God has a passionate heart for little ones such as Tiny, who has been "orphaned" by her circumstances and is too weak and defenseless to do anything about it. I can only do the part that has been given to me, which is a pretty honorable part to have. I must leave the rest up to her Defender, and trust that her Defender is strong!!

Someone's got a new smile

And she's pretty proud of it too!

boys will be boys

The boys have had a great start to their Spring so far - frog catching, wild turkey chasing, worm raising, sports playing, bike riding and mud & grass stains to boot. Can it get any better?

Oh yes, and a camp out in the back yard with Daddy - just icing on the cake!

treasure

This Mother's Day, I was reminded that I am living in some prime times. This stage of motherhood, I realized, has got to be one of the best. The kids are so full of love, tenderness, innocence and no inhibition of their feelings of love. On their own initiative, my little ones worked tirelessly on homemade cards, complete with misspelled words and fun drawings. They were filled to the brim with excitement to share their labors of love with me on Mother's Day morning. Kylee also created some precious necklaces to wear proudly around my neck. Their sweet words, their excitement, their eagerness to please and to pour out love so freely ... words just can't express what that does to this mama's heart.







I am absolutely overflowing with joy. However, I cannot for a moment take this stage of sweet little life for granted as it will not last long ("tween" years are just 3 years away!). In the same way, I do not take for granted the gift that these little ones are to me.



I know there are no guarantees in this life on Earth. I have too many close friends and family members whose journey of motherhood has been full of challenges - multiple miscarriages or loss of a child later in life, infertility, single parenthood, or helping a child battle for his life against cancer. This Mother's Day, my heart hurt for the precious moms I know who have experienced so much pain. I do not deserve the precious ones I am "mom" to, they are a gift. I treasure these days.

unpredictability

Today, I am hurting for the many children in the US (around 500,000) who are stuck in the foster care system, including our own, precious baby girl. Even though I am a part of the foster care system, and I love the little ones placed in my home to pieces, I am not always a fan of the way it works. We do it because, as Christians, we feel it is our duty to provide care for the fatherless and defenseless. However, it is not easy. Our state foster care system runs in such a way that children are removed from their homes or families because they are not safe. They may be abused, neglected, born addicted to drugs, or a combination of any of the above. They need a safe place to call home until 1) their family of origin can become responsible enough to provide safe care for their child/children or 2) their family of origin proves themselves incapable of providing a safe home and, therefore, parental rights are terminated (most often unwillingly) and the children become available for adoption.

What becomes complicated is that "in between time" when birth parents are either working to meet their conditions for their child/children to be returned, or failing to do so. They get so many chances! And while they get chance after chance, their child/children remain in a temporary foster home. Older kids know this full well and it is not easy for them to be displaced from their home, placed in another (even if it's a great home!) and just wait... and wait... and wait for their parents to come around, or fail to do so. They want so badly to be with their family - even if it's not the greatest - because that is, after all, their family. The little ones we take in are often unaware of all that is going on around them, but day by day they are loved and cared for by a family they consider their own, bonding to a mother that they have no other reason to believe is not their own. It happened with A. and it's happened with Tiny. So, after months and months of belonging to the only family they have ever known, they are often torn from it to return to their birth family. We are one of many foster families who would gladly adopt the children in our care should that become a possibility, but that's not always the case.

Frustration abounds on the part of the foster parents as the birth parents fail, but are given more chances and these precious ones sit in limbo. The timing of how long a child will be in a foster home fluctuates daily, based upon the birth parents performance. "They are doing great, we'll move this right along and reunify the child with their parents soon" can quickly change to "These parents are completely incapable of providing safe care, we're going to fast track this to adoption" and then bounce back to the first statement within a matter of weeks. It's an emotional roller coaster ride, to say the least, and, once again, the poor children sit in limbo.

Today has been a day where frustration abounds and our hearts hurt for the future of our girl. We want the world for her - a forever family to love and adore her and help her to become all that her Maker has intended for her to be. We were on track to have that hope fulfilled... but the plans have changed, once again. Depending on the Judge's ruling at our next court date, this little princess might have many, many more months to wait. I argued with the social worker that this couldn't possibly be in the best interest of this baby girl that I adore... no - this cannot happen, not again! But, I have no power in this fight and my opinion holds no weight. However, we belong to the One whose power created the universe. So we trust and pray and.... wait.

Eternal princess

Foster care requires sacrifice by every family member. There are times when I ask the kids to help keep the baby happy so that I can finish up dinner... there are moments when my children can't have their needs met immediately because I am in the middle of feeding or changing or rocking the baby... there are several trips taken to the county for Tiny to have visits with her parents... and, with a baby often in my arms, I can't always run and play along with the kids as I would like, though I am sure to make the most of the times without a baby in my arms.

On one occasion, the kids were playing in the basement and I asked Kylee to please hold and entertain the baby so that I could complete dinner for the family. She had a moment of hesitation when she realized that she would not be able to continue playing as she was, even though she absolutely adores Tiny. I understood Kylee's predicament, because I am often interrupted from my tasks to care for the baby's needs.

"Sweetie, I know it's not always easy to have the baby to care for. We all have to work together as a team and I really appreciate when you help. Do you know that God see's all the times when you love Tiny above yourself and meet her needs before your own? He knows, Ky, and He rejoices."

Kylee's eyes suddenly grew wide and I could nearly see sparkles glittering within them! "Mom, when I get to heaven, will God give me jewels in my crown for the times I'm loving Tiny?" She asked with a broad smile.

That's my girl - always wanting to be a princess, even in God's eternal kingdom.

Visitors!!

Papa posing while Cole takes his photo

In April we were blessed to have my parents come out and spend some time with us!! I always love how they just jump into our lives, following along on our adventures, adhering to our schedules, loving on our friends and neighbors, and enjoying life with us. They are also quite helpful with the kids (Papa always creates exciting outings for the boys, especially, while Ky's at school) and Mom is great at helping with meals and laundry. They got to know our little Tiny (who, despite her name, is a BIG part of our lives) and enjoy her sweetness and smiles. Oh how we cherish these times with our family!!! Being so far away from them will never be easy.

We are watching videos from Indonesia on Sheila and Paul's blog

Nana reading to Colson at the gym. I believe they were at the gym 3 times in their 6 days with us! Ky was excited to show Nana and Papa her progress... and still has not forgotten that Papa said she looks like a professional on the beam. :O)

A posed photo at the gym (pay no attention to the little head in my arms. :O) )

One of the most exciting moments during my parents visit was that the boys learned to ride bikes without training wheels!! They were so very excited to show Nana and Papa!! Because we are far from all family, many of these precious moments are unable to be shared with our loved ones, so this felt extra special!!

Papa spent much time on bike rides with the boys!

We had everything from snow to 70 degree sunshiny days during their visit - typical for April in Wisconsin. On the nice days, we spent nearly all day outdoors on bikes, playing sports, and so forth. Papa and Kylee worked so hard to get this kite up in the air. My determined little girl does not give up easily!! But, alas, the bird wouldn't fly. I think it's time for a new kite.

And, on the not so nice days, we were able to have lots of fun playing Wii indoors. I don't like to play Nana at tennis - she's good. However, I was pretty excited to beat my dad during our family bowling tournament!! :O)

Fun was had by all. We treasure our family so much and love the rare moments that we get to spend time together. Thank you, Mom and Dad, for taking the time to invest in our lives!!! We love you!