Sending Out

Sunday morning was an emotional time for me. Becca, the leader for our trip to the Dominican Republic, had arranged for our children to be commissioned in their worship time. Ok, sounds like a nice thing to do. Thanks for thinking of that...these were my thoughts.

Sunday morning rolled around and I saw my little guys and Haleigh (the girl standing with them) up on the stage looking so brave. WOW...it hits me...we are really doing this. We are really about to take our kids to a country where you cannot drink the water, where they will take a cold shower each day (if they get a shower), and cannot flush paper down the toilet. We are removing them (and ourselves) from our United States of Comfort...we are never going to be the same!

Funny side note...I promise the kids are NOT taller than Becca...I was just standing at a strange angle!

Then...the praying started...kids and volunteers all surrounded our kids and prayed all at once out loud! What a beautiful sound. Individuals lifting their voices to the only One who has control over the lives of these precious kids. And then...the crying! You can barely see the kids for all the people surrounding them in prayer. I began to see a visual representation of the strength of prayer...it was beautiful...really...just beautiful to see the body of believers coming together to pray..and half of them are just kids!! Amazing!So, will you join with these and pray for us while we are ministering in the Dominican Republic? Pray we will be the hands and feet of Jesus, that others will see Him in all we do, and that we will experience the power of God in ways that leave us forever changed. Pray for Becca, David, Jodi, Haleigh, Robbie, Jackson, Will, and me. This is our team. Pray also for Hayden and Brooklyn...they are the left behind and confused toddlers!

Strap on your seatbelt...this blog is about to go for a wild and crazy ride!!

Amazing Music!

So, I'm blogging about something different today...music! I am providing a button on here that links to an album by one of the worship leaders at our church...Austin Stone Community Church. It is fantastic music. Several of the songs on the album are ones we use in worship at the Stone...and they are amazing. You will not be disappointed. In addition, there is a song on this album about Amos and Story...the two children Aaron and his wife Jamie are adopting out of Haiti right now. So, buy the album....worship...and when you hear the song about their children...pray they will be home soon with Aaron and Jamie!

Our New Niece!

Some know and some do not...this came about very fast...

We have a new niece. My brother Shane and his wife Angie have been working through paperwork to be approved for adoption. They were approved a few weeks ago, then chosed by a birth mother the same day!! The following morning, they found out the baby would be born just a few days later!! WOW!!

So, friends and family...this is Megan Joy...

For those who are now wondering...NO, that did not make me want another baby...primarily...the chickadee on the other side is enough to handle right now! However, Megan is an amazingly sweet baby and I had a wonderful time holding her as much as possible this weekend.

The girly in the purple in the following photo is Megan's big sister Abigail...our four year old niece!

all the cousins...looking very innocent...this cannot possibly be true....well...it was very late in the evening. So, the next day....

Doesn't that look like too much fun!! They had a blast hanging out together!

I saved the best for last though...this is my all time favorite from the weekend. What a sweet hearted big cousin! He sat for a very long time just holding her...

A Widget or a Wedgie

Will was laying next to me while I was getting my new widget built. At one point he said..."Mommy, why does that button say something about a wedgie"!!! It was "customize your widget"...what a kid! Anyway, check out the cool new bookshelf I put at the bottom of my page. These are the books I have enjoyed this year...I will keep adding as I read. Please feel free to post in the comments section about books you enjoy....I am always looking for the next book to add to the pile. Right now the current read is "How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents"...it is written by the same author as "In the Time of Butterflies" and is set in the Dominican Republic. AHHHH...what a nice segue....

So, we need to gather some things to bless the people in the DR! We leave in just a few weeks...I cannot believe it! We will carry rubbermaid style tubs filled with supplies and here are some things we need. Let me know if you have some of these things to send...

* Flashlights and batteries

* small hand soap dispensers for school bathrooms--preferably antibacterial (no foam soap please)

* Moisture absorbers you put into closets to prevent mold. We need these for our medical supply closet. We need 2 every 40 days.

* 5 clip boards-the kind you hold in your hand

* grapefruit seed extract

* boxes of pens and pencils for the school

* hand held pencil sharpners

* ink cartridges for the printer at teh house - we have an hp psc 1315 all in one printer, scanner, copier. we need color and black cartridges. Color- HP Tri-color print cartridge 8 ml # 28 Black-HP Black print cartridge 19 ml #56
* roles of masking tape and duct tape

* ticky-tac the stuff teachers use for sticking posters to the wall

* scotch tape dispensers and extra roles

* bug spray

* hand sanitizer

* kids flavored toothpaste (just kids flavors...we have enough travel size toothpaste to teach dental hygiene to the entire country)

* tacs --for a bulletin board

* paper clips

* white printer paper

* construction paper (all colors)

* card stock (all colors)

* roach hotels--those things you put out that roaches crawl through and then ill the whole family

* khaki pants-ONLY toddler sizes and a little smaller (for skinny kids ages 3-6)

* tennis shoes-ONLY toddler sizes(for skinny kids ages 3-6)

* underwear-ONLY toddler sizes(for skinny kids ages 3-6)

* bulletin board decorations-ONLY spanish. Stuff for a bulletin board that will be used to do seasonal displays, holiday, special anouncements.

*small storage bins (shoe box size and larger)

* storage boxes for pencils, pens, glue, and scissors (the small ones, so we can put one on a table for kids to share from)

*cotton balls (for art)

* paint(for art)

*q-tips(for art)

*popsicle sticks(for art)

*stickers

*anything “crafty”

Calling all Chickadees

This past week while we were visiting Mimi and Poppy (Robbie's parents), Mimi started calling Brooklyn "chickadee". It was very cute. So, we were sitting in Gran's house (Robbie's grandmother) when something thudded into the window. It was a bird. Seriously...the thing just flew straight into the window! We were sure it was dead, but actually, it was just stunned. Mimi went out and picked it up. It just sat there in her hand...and what do you know...it was a chickadee!It sat there for the longest time before flying into a nearby tree. We couldn't believe after calling Brooklyn her chickadee all week long, that a chickadee sat right on Mimi's hand!

So, before this post I did a little research and here is what I found about this particular little chickadee...

A bird almost universally considered “cute” thanks to its oversized round head, tiny body, and curiosity about everything, including humans.

HAAAAA!!!! If you know anything about my kids, they all have head measurements that are off the charts! Brooklyn is certainly the smallest of all 3 kids, but her head is still big!! Hmmm...so, oversized round head, tiny body...check! Curiosity about everything...you decide....

So...I think this one sticks. We call Brooklyn "B" alot of the time...but I think Chickadee is a perfect nickname for this little one!

Strangely Relaxing...day 3 in NY

Yesterday I spent the day by myself because Robbie had work in New Hampshire. I mostly wandered, but still ended up in most of the places I wanted to go. The city is confussing to navigate, and I did not attempt the subway or taxis without my travel-savvy hubby! So, more walking.

Over the weekend they had these lawnchairs in the middle of the street on one side of Times Square. We thought it was just a weekend thing, but they were back yesterday. Seriously, these people are justing sitting in the middle of the street in Times Square!

There are also some more artistic lawn chairs...I did talk Robbie into posing in one the day before...

Nice! So, the funny thing is...on one side of the street there are all these people hanging out in the street and on the other side of the street traffic is jammed up and taxis are honking! Crazy...hilarious to watch! Other than this one shot of relaxation, the city was very loud and busy on a Monday morning. Robbie had taught me how to "walk like a New Yorker", and I did pretty well...none of the "touristy" people bugged me to go on their rides or see their shows! I did get a glimpse of myself in a window and scared myself by the scowl on my face!! Too NY...so, I popped into the M&M shop to lighten up a little. I'll leave you with this fun image.

God of this City

Well, day 2 in NYC was exhausing! We have now walked the length of Manhattan from St. John the Divine Cathedral to Battery Park! Google maps tells me that is 7.7 miles...my feet tell me more!

I could blog about all sorts of landmarks and famous sites we saw yesterday. However, that would be nothing more than a tourist side show. You know what these things look like. So, I am taking a different approach.

When we got here I was overwhelmed by Times Square. It is so busy, so crowded, so loud and bright...it displays all that we are as a consumer driven society. Yesterday as we walked and went places, I found God in this city. Here's the story...

We started at St. Patrick's cathedral.

When we arrived, they were still having mass. We were cautious about going inside...mindful of being reverent of their worship. (I did take this photo without a flash and only took one). The choir was singing in a loft high behind us and the voices were filling the church. It was breathtaking. The beauty of the cathedral and the voices together honestly overtook me. I was moved to tears.

We continued on and saw many other sites before we came to Trinity Church.

It is a much smaller place, but still so beautiful. We walked through the gardens and cemetary beside the church. In these gardens stands a statue...

Honestly, what first caught my eye was the base figure on the front side...it is a carving of Adam and Eve with the serpent wrapped around them both. As I looked around on each side, I saw Abraham, Noah, David, Isaac, Ruth...I cannot remember all the Biblical lives represented...but there are 3 on each of the 4 sides. I was reflecting on the lives of these people...some were great men and women of God...most failed many times...none were without sin....except the one on top. In this statue, Jesus is at the top...his blood covering all! I was so thankful to God for this visual representation of His grace covering us.

We rounded the day out by visiting a service of Redeemer Presbyterian on the campus of Hunter College. We went to hear Tim Keller speak and were not disappointed. He is a wonderful preacher. It was neat to see so many worshipping there...a great end to an already amazing day.

See, many would say the mass we observed is just a ritual, but if you choose to see God, you will. Many will walk by the statue at Trinity church and see beauty without significance. Even these fantastic flowers...some see wonder, but only in the flowers and not in the One who created something so unique. God is everywhere. It is a personal choice to see Him when He reveals Himself. I am in awe of Him, and thankful He allowed me to see glimpses of Him in this city!