Daddy's Day

As children, we may not have realized how incredibly blessed we were.  

We had Daddies that loved us, were committed to their family, whom showered us with fun, affection and affirmation.  They protected us, taught us, developed our character, spoke of our immense value to them, directed us towards our God-given purpose in the world, and were our reliable, faithful, stable, secure rock.

Then HE became "Daddy", and it was the most beautiful thing in all the world to me.

He poured himself out to them, following the example he had seen lived before him all his life long  - patience, encouragement, fun, laughter, discipline, praise, provision, protection.

And they flourished in his love and protection.

God pierced our hearts for those who knew not of the love, protection and commitment of a father, 

and He sent them to our home.

They got to be loved and adored by such an amazing Daddy.

And they, too, flourished.

In recent months, we've been evermore reminded of the irreplaceable value of a father.

Fatherless children have melted in the warm and strong love Jim has poured upon them.

Today, we know how blessed we were.  

We celebrate the amazing men that we call "Dad", "Papa" and "Poppy".

To this day, they remain our greatest fans - supporting, encouraging, and loving us wholeheartedly.  We are so incredibly grateful.

And we celebrate the one these kiddos get to call "Daddy".  We praise God for the leader, husband and father that he is.  We could not love him more.

”A truly rich man is one whose children run into his arms when his hands are empty.”

”Small boys become big men through the influence of big men who care about small boys.”

”A man never stands as tall as when he kneels to help a child.”

”A father carries pictures where his money used to be.” 

”I cannot think of any need in childhood as strong as the need for a father’s protection.”

”It is not flesh and blood but the heart which makes us fathers and sons.”

Daddies Needed

I just can't wrap my mind around it.

I am constantly blown away by the infatuation the newest little ones have with "Daddy".

They love and adore him, because he has loved and adored them.  Though they are "supposed" to call him by his name, they just can't help themselves.  To them, it is the first time they've been able to use the name "Daddy" and they love it.

They race with the other kids to be the first to greet him at the door upon his arrival from work, screaming "Daddy!!!!" with so much excitement I think they're going to burst.  It is quite the sight to see the man I love completely overtaken by 7 squealing children.  It is a beautiful, colorful, tender and lively scene.  I am flooded with affection and fondness for the man every time.

Twice Jim has traveled for work while B and J have been with us.  Each time, B struggles.  "He's supposed to come home every night to his family, and I'm a part of his family!"  Bedtime isn't as special  to her when "Daddy's" tickles and bedtime stories are absent, and every night he's been away there have been tears.

These precious little ones are reminding me time and time again how invaluable faithful, committed daddies are.  They provide such stability, security and safety to life.  Their strong, gentle and affirming love is like no other on earth.

With their return home on the horizon, we've been trying to talk more and more about it.  Little B articulated one of my worst fears one afternoon as we talked, "But, Ms. Terra, I don't got no Daddy at home."

Oh, how my heart broke.  With a quivering chin I scrambled for words to say, but they felt empty, "I'm sorry, sweetie.  I know that will be hard...."

"But," she interrupted,  "I got a Daddy in God."

I embraced her and cried.  A Father to the fatherless is God in His holy dwelling. 


Daddies are needed.  There are children everywhere living without the security and safety and comfort they provide.  It has been so wonderful to see these children thrive with the love of a father, and amazing to see Jim exemplifying for them the way their Heavenly Father loves them - exceedingly, abundantly, completely.  It is no small task.  But it is life changing.

2011 in review

With the new year having arrived, I see a lot of people choosing a "word of the year". I like the idea, but for me, it is easier to do so after the year is complete and I see how God has worked and moved in the lives of our family. Looking back through 2011, we will remember it as a year of "growth". Growth in numbers, growth in character, growth in faith, growth in leadership, growth in life experiences... we most certainly did some growing in 2011.

We started the year trying to prepare our hearts to say good bye to the beloved little girl that worked her way into each of our hearts after 12 months of living in our home. The idea of "handing her over" was more than we could bear and we shed tears often and tried to help our kids through the grief. It was a time when we were reminded that He is worthy of every sacrifice. We were to live for Him, no matter what the cost. We did our best to pray, "Not our will, but Yours, Lord..." but it was a daily struggle to submit to a plan that would break our hearts.


In the midst of the pain, we were also preparing for a little boy to join our family who was in need of a forever home. We faced some fears in regards to his condition, but God pulled us right through those, reminding us to be strong and courageous and not afraid, for He goes before us and He will be with us. If God placed this child in our care, He would equip us to meet his needs, however severe they might be. The baby nursery started taking on more of a boy look, though it continued to be our foster daughter's room while we awaited her court proceedings to conclude. On the day we learned the baby boy was born, we also learned that his mother had changed her mind and was going to try to parent him. We worked through some discouragement as our hopes and expectations of holding and loving this baby boy did not turn into reality, but we trusted in God's plan. Not until later would we know how God would use the story of this baby boy in the future of our family.

Before we knew it, the court proceedings for our foster daughter came to an end - with an unexpected and surprising ruling! Because of the time she spent in our care and the strong bond that existed, the courts determined that she should remain in our home and be adopted by our family! We had not gained the son that we were expecting, but we gained a daughter, against all odds! She is a gift we did not deserve, but we thank God every day that He chose us for her - our Carys Nicole whom we love passionately. She has grown into quite an opinionated and vivacious toddler who makes sure her voice is heard, as the youngest of 4. She also keeps us laughing and dancing as we go about our days. Her story will always remind us that God's power is above and beyond any earthly power - it is He who controls all things!!



In June, while still adjusting to the incredible news of our new daughter-to-be, we had yet another call for another precious little girl. It was the last thing on our minds at the time, but we could not say "no" to a vulnerable child waiting for a family to come and claim her. She struggled with the same life threatening issues as did the baby boy we had been expecting to join our family earler, and God had already done the work in our hearts to prepare us to say "yes". A part of our family she would become, for however long she would need us. She has brought such immeasurable joy to our home with her sweet cuddles and smiles. We celebrate every precious milestone she reaches all the more, as each one is a miracle in itself. Watching her grow has been such a celebratory journey. She is a priceless treasure, made in an amazing and wonderful way.


The boys grew in their roles as big brothers and took their job as "protectors" to their little sisters quite seriously. They can often be found growing their muscles by doing push ups and sit ups for their big new role. :) They also grew as little sports fans, learning names and numbers of the athletes of all professional sports teams and grew in their basketball, football and baseball skills as they played and practiced each sport throughout the year. No matter the weather, the boys can often be found in the back yard donning Packers or Brewers attire and playing hard!! The boys have also become great little readers and love to practice their new ability on their little sisters. We love it! They also grew into a much more loud and rambunctious stage of boyhood, which we hear is completely normal... but with the 2 of them to play off of one another... let's just say we grew a few more wrinkles and gray hairs this year.





God grew our sweet Ky's character through her first gymnastics injury and set back. We hope that the lessons she learned through her experience will carry her through life as she looks back and remembers that God can be trusted in all things and that His plans and purposes for our lives are greater than anything we could imagine. Though she has found her little brothers to be, at times, a little annoying (can't say we blame her - isn't that how little brothers are supposed to be?!) she has loved having the little girls in our home and loves to care for them and love on them. She is maturing into such a beautiful young lady. Her kindness and tender, gentle and gracious ways leave me wanting to be more like her.


Jim and I were able to do some growing of our own, adjusting to our role as parents of 5 as the biggest! We each also took on new leadership positions in our church. Jim's opportunity to travel to Togo this past summer helped grow him in many wonderful ways, including a reignited passion to lead our family in ways that have eternal value. It can be so challenging to be "in the world, but not of it" and I am so grateful for his leadership of our family.


We also celebrated our first decade of marriage together this year and remembered with tears of joy as well as pain the journey that God has brought us through in those 10 years. Through every challenge and triumph, He has always been there. I absolutely adore the man God gave me for life. One of my most favorite things to do these days is to find his gaze amidst the chaos and noise that frequents our home... and smile. No matter the frustrations of the moment, the clamor that diminishes our ability to hear one another in the same room, the spills and messes that surround us, the exhaustion we feel at the end of nearly every day, we know how very blessed we are. We are so grateful for the love, the life and the family God has trusted us with.

the one my heart loves

"I found the one my heart loves. I held him and would not let him go..." Song of Solomon 3:4

How easy it is to look back on our love story 10 years ago and remember with such excitement those feelings that first accompanied our growing relationship. As wonderful and as joyous and those feelings of "falling in love" were, I would have to say that there is something much better.

A husband who ...

... has seen me acting angry and awful
... has heard me cry more tears than he thought were possible
... has had to carry me up the stairs when my own body failed me
... has seen me dirty, smelly, sick, tired, weary, disheveled
... waits patiently while I tend to be stubborn about seeking forgiveness
... knows my every failure, fault and shortcoming
... is often put on the back burner while I tend to the busy needs of our home,

and yet still says, "I love you."

Happy 10 year anniversary, Jimmy. Thank you for loving me in such a beautiful, wonderful way. You are the one my heart will love forever!

summer whirlwind

I cannot believe that summer has come and gone already!! I truly am shocked - it feels as though I merely blinked and the "lazy" summer months were over. However, because I'm a bit of a photo fanatic, I know that I have captured many cute kids living a lot of life in the last couple months, so more time must have passed than I dare to accept.

We started our summer with a wonderful visit from Jim's parents. It was so, so, so nice to see them and spend time with them. Though they had met her several times before, this was the first time that they were able to embrace Carys as their new granddaughter - it was a beautiful sight!!

We had so much fun!

Two days after their departure, our precious Elle arrived in our home. When I think of her, I just think "Joy". I am not going to lie, I felt rather trepidacious driving to the hospital to pick her up on that warm afternoon in June, wondering how on earth I would be able to give enough of "me" to each of the little ones in my home. However, we could not deny the fact that this little one needed a home, so we pushed on, trusting God to equip us. Oh my, has He ever!!! He has sustained us day by day, giving us the energy, strength, stamina and JOY to meet the needs of those He has placed in our care. There has been so much love and I have melted many times as I see all the tiny hearts in our home completely embrace the newest little addition.

A week after our baby girl arrived, Daddy departed to Togo, West Africa for 2 weeks. What an incredible experience he had. They made much progress on the Hospital of Hope as they worked alongside incredible Togolese men. Jim has said that their contentment and gratitude in life, despite what little they had, as well as their amazing work ethic left indelible marks upon his life. I am so grateful that Jim got to go and be forever changed.

(he's the white guy in the back with a black hat)

The kids loved hearing Daddy's stories of his time in Togo! One of their favorites, however, that has been repeated multiple times by them, is that the Togolese people are so used to HOT weather (Jim was working in the 120's!) that when it gets as low as 90, they start pulling out hats and jackets!! I cannot imagine! Well, the kids couldn't either, so the next 90 degree day we had, they wanted to try it out for themselves. :)

Have I mentioned how much I love these kids of mine?!?!

We had such a wonderful reunion with Jim when he returned. What a wonderful husband and daddy we have been given!

Two weeks later, Daddy's work took him away to Spain, for yet another 2 weeks. The kids were devastated!! However, already on the calendar prior to any knowledge of such work travels, was a planned trip from my mom, Nana, to visit us. It came at perfect timing and we so enjoyed our time with Nana!!

The kids had chosen many activities over the summer, so we did some of this:

and this:

and this:

and this:

lots of this:

and lots of this:


got to spend some time playing with the "grandmas":

got to cheer daddy on in his first wiffle ball tournament:

were able to make a Brewers game:



and when we weren't running around playing,
we got to enjoy our wonderful, big backyard!!

Near the end of summer, we got to deal with our first family bone break and all the ramifications that go along with it. It is still impossible to keep this girl down!

What a full summer season we had!!! Now onto fall, my most favorite season of all!!! :)