Fun in the Sun

We had a BLESSED Father's Day Weekend . . .

with Family and Friends and Fun in the Sun.

The A. Family have been friends for over 30 years,

and we usually get to spend one weekend every summer

with them at their grandparents' cabin on the Hood Canal.

Can you tell that Friend M. has grown up on the water?

(Great job on the photography, Hosanna!)

Josiah and Elijah love to inner tube . . .

and so does Sarah.

Friend M. Showing Off Again.  (smile)

Jim and I so needed time to rest and relax after a crazy busy Spring.

Our families are getting smaller . . .

this dock used to be overrun by our combined 17 children.

So fun to watch an excellent skier.

Elijah tried out the wakeboard for the first time  . . .

and boy did he have fun.

Hosanna conquered the skis.

Mr. A is still quite the skier.  

Jim was sad that he couldn't join him,

but hurt his back a bit at work recently.  

Sarah gave the skis a try . . .

but did not quite conquer them.

We all enjoyed some time in the kayaks.

But, most of all I enjoyed spending time with my dear friend, Mrs. A.

I am Thankful for . . .

Family

Friends

Fellowship

Fun in the Sun

I Learned Something New

Yesterday's Question of the Day was:

Where / How did Jeremiah & Ashleigh come up with the name

Aiden Wilson D. ?

Maybe this will help . . .

My youngest grandson's initials are

A. W. D.

(No, he was not named after All Wheel Drive.)

Apparently, I am not the only one that only knows 

a pretty well known Christian Author by his First Initials:

A. W. _________

Yes.

A. W. Tozer's name is:

Aiden Wilson Tozer.

Who knew ???

Now . . .

A. W. Tozer has been one of Jeremiah's favorite authors for many years,

and they were definitely set on using the name Aiden.

However, Jeremiah had not quite fully embraced using Wilson as a middle name,

until Ashleigh reminded him that Ronald W. Reagan's middle name was Wilson.

Decided.

No need to wonder for a moment longer.

Not only do Jeremiah & Ashleigh have great respect for Ronald W. Reagan,

but they happened to meet each other when they were both students at the

Ronald Reagan Leadership Academy,

at the Reagan Ranch Center in Santa Barbara, CA 

in the summer of 2006.

And that . . .

is how little

Aiden Wilson D.

got his name.

Question of the Day:

Where / How Did . . .

Jeremiah & Ashleigh come up with the name:

Aiden Wilson D. ???

Isn't he . . . 

ABSOLUTELY ADORABLE ???

Papa & Nana got to Skype with him the other night for an hour.

We must have been pretty boring,

because he slept through the whole conversation.

But, we did have a good chat with his Daddy & Mommy.

Photo Fail . . . but a Fun Night

Last Monday was our first Summer Track Meet of the year.

Oh. So. Fun.

We set out the Picnic Blanket . . .

and set up the Lawn Chairs on the in-field . . .

not too far from the Finish Line.

Mama was READY . . .

to CHEER for my kids . . .

and to take some FUN PHOTOS.

Elijah is lined up and ready to run the 50m. Dash.

I then put my camera back in the case.

I kept CHEERING for the kids . . .

but the camera stayed put.

I asked Hosanna to take the camera when she headed

over to the other side of the track to watch Sarah run the 100m,

while I cheered for Elijah on "my side" of the track.

(for the 100m, the Little Ones run on one side of the track,

while the Big Kids and adults run on the other side of the track)

I have no idea who picked up the camera and captured this shot of Josiah;

and I have no idea which race he is running.

Our Mystery Photographer also captured this blurry picture of Hosanna,

who decided not to run . . . but was a great Cheerleader for her siblings.

So.

Yes.

I completely FAILED as the Fun Family Photographer for the night.

But, I did CHEER the kids on as they ran.

Let's See . . .

Who Ran What ???

Ben came out and ran the 4x100 Relay with the Young Ones.

What a FUN Big Brother they have !!!

Hosanna didn't put on her running shoes,

but tried to pick up the slack of the Family Photographer.

Sarah ran the 100m and the 4x100m Relay.

(She brought a friend, so was a bit more interested

in "hangin' with the friend" than running.)

Josiah ran the 400m, the 800m, and the 4x100 Relay.

Elijah . . .  ran . . . and ran . . . and ran . . .

He ran the 50m. Hurdles . . .

and the 50m. Dash . . .

and the 100m Dash . . .

and the 800m Run.

Then . . .

he usually runs the "Jogger's Mile",

and ran a 6:30 last summer;

but he has never run the "Competitive" 1500m 

with the more "Serious Runners".

One of Josiah's friends is a long distance runner,

who ran on the middle school track team with Josiah this year.

Elijah was excited to run with Luke this summer;

and I was excited that Elijah would have someone 

who could help him set a good pace.

When it was time for the Jogger's Mile,

Luke & Elijah told me that they were going to "run slow"

in the mile (with Luke's younger brothers),

and then they would pick up their pace in the 1500m.

So  . . .

this means . . .

that Elijah . . . 

who had not even run since last summer . . .

was planning to run the mile . . .

take a little break . . .

and then run the 1500 "competitively" ???

Okay.

Luke and Elijah ran a "slow" 8:30 mile . . .

so that his younger brothers could keep up.

(I am not even going to put out there how slow Mama runs walks the mile.)

They then had about a 5 minute break while others ran the 400m.

Then . . .

Elijah ran the 1500m. in 6:22.

Seriously?!?!

He hadn't run since last summer.

He had never run both the mile and the 1500m in one night.

He had already run the 50m Hurdles, the 50m, the 100m, the 800m and the mile.

Then . . .

of course . . .

he capped off his night by running the 4x100 Relay.

I think that next week I might encourage him to not run the Joggers Mile,

and just see how fast he can run the 1500m.

(I'm sure he will "warm up" with the 50, 100, 800 . . .)

Yes.

He is already talking about joining the middle school 

cross-country team when he is in 7th grade.

When Personal Responsibility is Missing

Do any of you read the blog, "Our Big Crazy Family" . . . written by "Crazy Dad"?  I have read their blog for quite a few years, and have enjoyed following their family as they moved to Kenya a year or so ago.

I thought this recent story was very interesting, as we saw much of this same cultural difference when we brought our Ghanaian children home.


“It is OK,” said Pastor John trying to make me feel better about the fact that I had just dug a hole for a tree that did not meet his standards.  “It must be your jembe.” (shovel / tool)

Must be my jembe?  I smiled.

I had heard about this cultural difference, but had not seen it on such vivid display yet.  Here in Kenya, personal responsibility is often not assigned to someone when something goes wrong.  In America, if a friend is at your house and drops a plate and it shatters to pieces, we know they did it and it is their fault, but we try to make them feel better by saying something like:

“Don’t worry about breaking the plate.  That plate had a chip in it anyway and I was going to throw it out.”

Here you would not say such a thing because your friend did not break the plate - the floor did.

So there I was on the mountainside with 10 RVA students and a local pastor planting trees.  When Pastor John saw the hole I had just dug, he thought there should have been more loose dirt in the bottom of the hole.  He asked for a different jembe and did a bit more digging while saying:

“It is OK.  It must be your jembe.”


Have any of you seen this in your adopted children?  Has it been a challenge to teach them Personal Responsibility?

When one of our daughters dropped a stack of plates, she said,  "The plates fell out of my hands." rather than, "Yes. I dropped them."

Now . . . some of you are thinking, "My bio. kids would say that, too."  Oh yes.  My bio. kids are certainly not above trying to pass the blame.  (smile)  But, if you look in the child's eyes . . . if you hear the tone of their voice . . . there is a BIG difference between a child trying to get out of taking Personal Responsibility and one who has absolutely no idea that there should be any Personal Responsibility.  My sweet daughter just looked at me, obviously confused, and absolutely convinced that the plates jumped out of her hands.  She was quite certain that it had nothing to do with her actions.

The wording difference may be subtle, but we have seen it many times over the past 5 years.  Our adopted children have a very difficult time accepting Personal Responsibility for things that happen.  They also find it very challenging to understand Cause & Affect.

If you have encountered this, I would love to hear if you have found ways to develop Personal Responsibility in  and/or teach Cause & Affect to adopted children from a culture that doesn't see things the same way that we see them.

By Faith . . . Noah Built an Ark. (Faith Filled Fridays)

Hebrews 11:7  “By faith, Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family.”

What would you do if you really felt that God had called you to build an ark?  Would you do it?

Is there anything in your life that you believe God has called you to do, that you haven’t done because “it seems too crazy”?  That must be how Noah felt, but he stepped out in faith and built the ark.

We had our 10 children, and lived on Jim’s teacher’s salary.  Everyone said, “You can’t afford so many children on a teaching salary.”  I said, “God called Jim to teaching; God called us to have a large family; so we believe that God will work out the difference.”

Hebrews 11:7 (continues)  “By his faith (Noah) condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.”

Noah stepped out and did the craziest thing . . . without any support.

Have you ever stepped out in faith with seemingly little support, but you KNEW that this was what the Lord was calling you to?

Five years ago, we stepped out in faith and adopted 3 children from Ghana.  By the responses of our friends and family, you would have thought we had decided to build an ark.   With 10 biological children, we had always been called “crazy”, but adopting 3 children from Africa seemed to put us in the “certifiably insane” category.

Everyone asked, “How are you going to pay for the adoptions?”

We responded, “We have no idea how the Lord plans to pay for it.  We certainly don’t have an extra $25,000 in our pockets; and we aren’t going to go into debt.  God told us that we are to adopt these children, so He is going to have to show us how He is going to pay for it.”

One month after seeing the picture of these 3 precious children, and the Lord telling Jim, “These are your children.”  we received an anonymous gift of $15,000 to help pay for the adoption.

Is there anything in your life that you believe God has called you to do, that you haven’t done because “it seems too crazy”?  

I do have a warning, though . . .

sometimes  . . .

just like Noah . . .

the adventure that God has called you to can be very lonely.

The past 5 years have been the absolutely loneliest years of our lives.  

We have lost friends . . . church family . . . jobs . . .  

Are you willing to be lonely for Christ?  Is it worth it?

Aiden Arrived

I know that women have been "finding out" for 20+ years whether they were pregnant with a boy or a girl . . . but I still just cannot get used to the fact that nearly everyone finds out before the baby is born.  I know.  Call me Old Fashioned.  We could have known with 7 of our 10 bio. kids . . . but we always told the doctors not to tell us.  We wanted to wait until delivery to make the announcement.

But, today, instead of telling you that . . .

"It's A Boy!"

I am happy to announce that . . .

"Aiden Arrived!"

Welcome to the World . . .

Aiden Wilson D.

weighing in at a healthy 9 lb. 3 oz.

Adoption Can Be HARD . . . What Are Our Resources ???

Rachel  *  1 month home from Ghana  * Only God knew the storms that lay ahead for all of us.

In the past 3 days, I have gotten 3 emails from or about families 
that are REALLY STRUGGLING with their adopted children.  


All 3 families are in serious trouble.

All 3 families are considering disruption.  

All 3 families came to me for help . . . support . . . advice.


My heart is BREAKING for them.


Oh how I wish I had the perfect answer 
(or magic pill to "make things all better).

Oh how I wish that I could take away their pain.


But . . . 

. . . oh how glad I am that they knew they could write to me.

. . . oh how thankful I am that I can show them love and support
      (where others may be giving judgment and condemnation).

. . . oh how thankful I am that they know I will pray for them.



Family #1  

Adopted 2 boys from Africa about 5 years ago.  Oldest son has brought them severe challenges since day one.  He has been in and out of treatment.  Mama is at the end of her rope.  "What should I do?" she cries out.  She does not want to disrupt . . . but does not want to destroy her marriage and the life of her other son if she keeps the eldest at home.

"I love our son, how could I not want to bring him home and raise him. Yet, how can I sacrifice the ability to thrive for our other son."

"Do I want to look back in ten years and realize I lost both children, neither of them thriving, and my husband because I was hard headed and thought I should be super woman?  What level of unsafety do I embrace?"


Family #2

Adopted a 16 month old a year ago.  Yes.  A Baby.  She also has 2 young boys, and is unexpectedly pregnant.  (I received this email from a friend of the mother.)

"Her marriage and pregnancy are suffering from the stress this little girl is bringing into their lives."

"She is a Christian woman who believes she can do all things with God's help but at the same time is watching her life and family crumble before her very eyes."



Family #3

Adopted 2 teen boys just 6 months ago, and they are looking for a new home for the oldest.  




I share these little tidbits of their stories for three reasons:

#1  Please pray for these families.  
     They need us to storm the gates of heaven on their behalf.

#2  They need resources.
      If you know anyone or any organization that works with families
      that are in need of disrupting an adoption, please let me know.
     (you can post a comment, or email me privately with this information)

#3  They need love, support, and encouragement.
      They need to know that they are not walking this journey alone.



And . . . just so you know . . . I will not tolerate ANY condemnation nor judgmental comments about these situations.  Those comments will be deleted immediately, and never mentioned.  

These families have trusted me with their most difficult stories, and I am only sharing them because I know that some of you may be aware of resources that I am not yet aware of . . . and I know that some of you have walked similar paths and may have just the right words to say (even though you don't have a magic pill, either).


THANK YOU for PRAYING with me for these precious families.

Let Me Know the Struggle Ends (Songs for Saturday)

I'm tired 
I'm worn 
My heart is heavy
From the work it takes to keep on breathing

I've made mistakes 
I've let my hope fail
My soul feels crushed
By the weight of this world
And I know that you can give me rest
So I cry out with all that I have left

Let me see redemption win
Let me know the struggle ends
That you can mend a heart that's frail and torn

I want to know a song can rise
From the ashes of a broken life
And all that's dead inside can be reborn
Cause I'm worn

I know I need 
To lift my eyes up
But I'm too weak
Life just won't let up
And I know that You can give me rest
So I cry out with all that I have left

Let me see redemption win
Let me know the struggle ends
That you can mend a heart that's frail and torn

I want to know a song can rise
From the ashes of a broken life
And all that's dead inside can be reborn
Cause I'm worn

And my prayers are wearing thin
I'm worn even before the day begins
I'm worn I've lost my will to fight
I'm worn so heaven so come and flood my eyes

Let me see redemption win
Let me know the struggle ends
That you can mend a heart that's frail and torn

I want to know a song can rise
From the ashes of a broken life
And all that's dead inside can be reborn
Yes all that's dead inside will be reborn
Though I'm worn 
Yeah I'm worn



More lyrics: http://www.lyricsmode.com/lyrics/t/tenth_avenue_north/

Trust in the Lord with All Your Heart (Faith Filled Fridays)

Proverbs 3:5-7  “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.  Do not be wise in your own eyes.”

Do you trust the Lord in your daily life . . . or do you rely on your own understanding?

Do you acknowledge him in every situation?  The good and the bad.

Do you acknowledge him in your daily conversations?  Do others know whom you put your trust in?

When Jim and I got married, we knew we wanted to have a large family.  We both wanted to have 6 kids, and believed this was the Lord’s calling on our life.  (Jim got his 6 boys and I got my 6 girls.) 

At age 21, I was having a lot of medical problems when my doctor told me that I had severe endometriosis and needed a complete hysterectomy.  I went to a 2^nd doctor; he confirmed the diagnosis, but told me that he would not do the surgery right away in order to give us time to pray about it.  He told me that I had a 2% chance to ever get pregnant.

How do you think I responded? 

How would you have responded? 

Did I walk out of the doctor’s office totally depressed and in despair?

No.  I walked out of the doctor’s office and told Jim, “God doesn’t care about percentages.”  

We went to our small group that night and I told all of our friends, “God doesn’t care about percentages.”  Everywhere I went, I shared the diagnosis, but said, “God doesn’t care about percentages.” 

I absolutely believed the power of God to heal me. 

I absolutely trusted God to fulfill the dreams of a large family that He had given me.

I absolutely had faith that the Lord had called us to have a large family,

and I was going to stand on His promises to me.

Hebrews 11:11-12  “By faith Abraham, even though he was past age, and Sarah herself was barren, was enabled to become a father because he considered him (God) faithful who had made the promise.  And so from the one man (Abraham), and he as good as dead (old), came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore.”

Two weeks after that 2^nd doctor’s diagnosis . . . I was pregnant with my first child.

I went on to have my first 6 babies in 6 years.

Now, as the mother of 12 children, I cannot imagine how many Godly descendants will come . . . because I had the faith to stand on the Lord’s promise to me . . . as did Abraham.

Do you trust the Lord in your daily life . . . or do you rely on your own understanding?

Do you acknowledge him in every situation?  The good and the bad.

Do you acknowledge him in your daily conversations?  Do others know whom you put your trust in?

Remember from Last Week:     Faith . . . is being “certain of what we do not see.”