VBS Boomerang Express

This has been the busiest week! Here are the boys in VBS action:

Here they are with their good friend Lily:

After Family Night on Thursday, the boys took the platform:

Andrew singing Jesus Came to Earth

This is Elijah singing:

I've got Joy down in my heart

Deep deep down in my heart.

Spell it- JOY down in my heart

Deep deep down in my heart.

Who put it there?

Jesus put it there and nothing can destroy it, -stroy it, -stroy
it, HUH!

Blogging at the Speed of Life

I used to work for a pediatrician that had a theory about why time seems to move faster the older you are. He said that one year in the life of a five-year-old is 1/5 (or 0.2) of his life and therefore seems very long. One year in the life of a 30 year old is 1/30 (or 0.03333) of her life and seems to go by quickly. If I recall correctly, I wasn't always very good at fractions in school, but it sure appears like a valid theory to me! These last few weeks have flown by. The Bible definitely has something to say about this. In the book of James, I am reminded that my life is like a mist that appears for a little while then vanishes. I have a friend whose entire blog is devoted to this idea. It is gracious of God to give us this perspective as we move from day to day.

One thing we do often is walk. This is a stretch of sidewalk we frequent on the way to Chick-fil-a. This particular day, Andrew saw the road ahead and told Elijah to hold his hand "for safety"!

Micah's boss and his family took us out on Taylorsville Lake recently. Micah and I tried- and I emphasize TRIED!- to water ski. The boys especially enjoyed the way the boat went really fast!

On June 6th, my baby brother graduated from high school. Congratulations Matt!!! We were fortunate to get to celebrate with him. I wrote a song in his honor that will tell you a little bit about what a cool brother/uncle he is.

Matt's Song
I hear Matt’s graduating this year
Moving to a brand new place in life
That will surely leave big basketball shoes to fill
What will the Journal Patriot write about next year?

Oh I hear Matt’s leaving town
Getting a ASU t-shirt instead of a graduation gown
All the high school girls around the state
Are out of luck finding another tall prom date

There is one less Eagle Scout to help if you’re caught in a bind
To put out your campfire and untangle your fishing line
One less day camp counselor and praise band drummer
Yard mower and guitar strummer

The road ahead for Matt is paved and promising
I’m sure he’ll miss the comforts home can bring
Though his parents might not know what to do with all the money they will save
With no more of Matt’s friends to feed brownies and grape kool-aid

Oh There is one less Eagle Scout to help if you’re caught in a bind
To put out your campfire and untangle your fishing line
One less day camp counselor and praise band drummer
Yard mower and guitar strummer

I hear Matt’s gone this year
And of course, I want to give him this advice
Find your place in God’s story and give Him all the glory
Be known for love and grace, in everything give thanks
To the One to whom your whole life belongs
Let His light in you shine strong

I have more pictures from our NC trip that I will share later. Our big news is that Micah has been accepted into the Interim Operator Program with Chick-fil-a. This summer, he will spend three weeks training to be put into a store for a trial period. God has blessed him so much in his abilities and we are so thankful and humbled by this next step for him. Please pray for us that we continue to work hard yet yield to God's will and leading for our family.

In the spirit of slowing down, I took a picture of the sky outside our window one evening. It was brilliant. The camera didn't do it justice.

Two Boys, Two Personalities

One thing I love about the life I have been given is the opportunity every day to get to know the little people in my home. It's not like getting to know another adult. I already know most everything about their lives- being their mom- but what I don't know and am learning is who God has made them to be. There are definitely things they do that are reminiscent of Micah or me... good things and not so good things! I am realizing that I share my life with boys being seasoned for a time I will not see. We like to talk about what they want to be when they grow up, but more importantly, how they will fit into God's story.

Andrew has grown into quite a conversationalist. His questions lately are things like, "What color is the wind?" and "Where does the sun go when it sets?" He is very curious and eager to figure things out. We talk about the wind and how it is invisible, but we still know it exists. He immediately related the lesson to God, which was where I was going with the whole thing, but he arrived at the conclusion himself! We recently had a conversation during a walk where Andrew declared that Mommy must know everything about God because she is an adult. He was shocked to find out that just because I am an adult, I don't know everything! I did assure him that God shows us enough of Himself in ways we can understand that we believe in Him. It has been fun-- and at times humbling-- to realize that he is at the age where he is putting things together. Micah loves having a philosopher in the house!

He just finished his second Awana book and was recognized at a ceremony at church this past Wednesday night.

Elijah, however, brings a different conversation to the table. Right now, he in convinced that the steeple on our church is a rocket ship. He is sure he can figure out how to get into it and blast off into space if he just asks the right person about it. We recently took the boys to eat on the waterfront near downtown. Elijah rounded a corner and ran right into a wall! He immediately looked up at me and the other people around and declared "that wall kinda moved!" I took a picture of him one night after he got himself ready to leave the house. He was really proud as he emerged from his closet in his tie and in his fancy, black shoes!

And here he and Andrew are with the "Rocket Ship".

One of the funniest things they do together is answer pages over the intercom system in stores. We will be shopping along when an employee will be paged over the intercom and both my boys, in unison, shout "I'll be right there!!!" It has certainlycaused us to get a lot of smiles from clerks and sales persons all over Louisville.

On a side note, I just want to acknowledge all the concern expressed for Micah's family and for Preston. God is healing him from such a devastating accident and for that we are so thankful. We are also thankful for the work He is doing in his family and even those who know- and know of- him. Please continue to join us in praying for him.

Dustin's Graduation Festivities

What a weekend! Micah's parents, Dustin, Mary, and Caleb, and Dustin's parents and grandparents came to KY for Dustin's graduation. We had a wonderful time with them. It made for full days and lots of dirty dishes! I love it though. I am always reminded of the admonition to be hospitable and share the things God has given us with others. Elijah- well... not so convinced this is the way to go; especially when it comes to sharing toys with Caleb! It was great practice for him and I think the three boys were good buddies by the end of their trip.

The boys were looking sharp!

After graduation, we had lunch at Huber Farms. I wanted to get some pictures there, but God had different plans. We had a huge storm and had to stay inside the building. Maybe next time!

On Friday evening, we had the whole crowd over for appetizers and fellowship. At one point, I suggested, being the contentious host that I am, that we all play a game. "Four on a Couch"came to mind, even though we hadn't played that one in SEVEN YEARS or so! After I had suggested it, I was not certain it was the best choice... but it was a blast! It's fun when you get a group together that would never be in the position to interact in this particular way and see how each personality adds to the action.

Here are the winners: the Men!

This is what Caleb thought of the action:

I love this picture of Micah's parents with the boys right before they left.

On the last day Mary and Dustin were here, we took all the kiddos to the park at the waterfront.

This summer will mark our eighth year here in Louisville. We love it when family and friends are able to visit.

Praise the Lord!

I would have loved to have heard from God's perspective the chorus of prayers lifted up for Preston this past week. God chose in His wisdom to heal Preston in a way that has kept him with us and for that we are grateful. He still has obstacles to overcome, but so far, what has happened in him is nothing short of a miracle! I know Micah's family appreciates all the love and concern shown for them during such a difficult trial. To read more about how Preston is doing, please follow the link below.

http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/prestonloyd

Pray for Preston

Yesterday evening, Micah's cousin's son, Preston, was in a terrible accident. He is 4 1/2 years old. His grandfather, not knowing he was behind him, backed over him with a riding lawnmower. Preston has been given an over 50% chance to survive this accident. He has had damage to many of his organs and head lacerations. He has already had one surgery to remove severely damaged organs and is on a respirator. At this point, the biggest challenges he faces are swelling and infection. Please pray for him- and for his family. We are all clinging to the throne of grace as we struggle through this situation, praying for healing. We know that God is able to give exactly what Preston needs to survive and what his family needs to persevere in the face of tragedy. This is a picture of him and Andrew a little over a year ago.

Joy in the Morning

Yesterday, I found myself in a place that I had spent countless hours dreading for many years. I was alone, sitting in my reproductive endocrinologist's office, just two floors above the labor and delivery unit where both my boys had been born. The office was quiet and dimly lit, I am assuming to calm those with reproductive anxieties. The ladies at the front desk even spoke with hushed tones. It was full of single women and couples either on the first leg of their "assisted" journey or at the end. For me, I was at the end- of this part at least.

It has been a complex journey. Since I first realized that I would be dealing with aggressive endometriosis 10 years ago, I anticipated it to be as such. For those of you who don't know this about me, you can imagine my apprehension in mentioning such a private, personal pain. But one thing that was clear yesterday- that really prompted this writing- was the heart change that has taken place in me over the last 10 years. It is truly a testimony of God's work. I know that 10 years ago, the thought of not achieving my child bearing goal would have been completely devastating. Totally incapacitating. But I sat there, listening to my doctor offering more assisted technologies that I knew were beyond what Micah and I had decided to pursue as the only available options, and I was at peace.

One thing I have learned through my own experience is not to take for granted my two precious boys. Through a lot of soul-searching, I have learned to separate (1)real, profound sadness over the effects of sin on my physical body and the challenges I have been faced with and (2)real, profound thankfulness for the wonderful gifts I have been given in Andrew and Elijah. I have even found joy in knowing I have a child I have never met that has spent all his or her days with Jesus and will one day lead me in worshiping Him- as that is all he or she has ever known. It may be difficult to see how these attitudes can co-exist, but God has graciously cultivated both in me. I think diving into the depths of sadness and rising again to the heights of thankfulness and trust in the Lord was a means to bring me peace yesterday. There have been days that I resented my physical form. In my expression of that to God, He slowly, gently reminded me over and over again that I am fearfully and wonderfully made and that He has given me the body I need to live the life He has called me to on this earth. He always listened, never wringing His hands (as Micah reminds me often) or wondering what in the world He was going to do with me. He always waited patiently on me, even though I was many times slow to entertain His plan. The words of the Psalmist are true, "Weeping is for the night, but joy comes in the morning."

I think the thing that surprises me the most in all of this is that joy did come in the morning- or more literally the afternoon- very differently than I had imagined. I had initially thought that my feelings of joy would be when I, or the doctors, had finally figured out how to appropriately deal with my problems and I would have clear answers or that I would get what I wanted. But as with most things, God's way of enveloping us in joy is much different than mine. Now, in the face of fewer answers than questions, there is joy. Joy in knowing I am in just, capable, never-failing hands. I am sure there will be sad days. In some ways though, I hope an appropriate sadness remains in me... so I never take for granted life and breath and everything else. Then one day, when I am made wholly new, I will be able to feel the complexity and fullness of that change and find ultimate joy in Jesus Christ- the One who has made this transformation possible.

The Lord has been giving both Micah and me hearts for adoption for a long time. You can begin to pray for us as we pray for His will and leading in this. We want to be obedient in seeking contentment as well as responding to whatever calling we are given. We know that in His way and in His time, all we are meant to accomplish for His glory will be accomplished on this earth.

I will post Easter pictures soon of the boys in their matching shirts and vests. We all took a long nap Sunday afternoon and lost prime daylight, picture-taking hours. We all hope you had a great Resurrection Day!