i'm back...sorta

Hi guys.

Golly gee, why doesn't someone just take my indoor plumbing and sliced bread away from me...having no internet is about as painful. At first I was fine and dandy, happy to be getting gobs of stuff done but now I'm constantly thinking about what I need to g*ogle and returning emails...and my *sniff, sniff* my blog friends who I assume are still out there somewhere??

Right now I'm at my church borrowing their internet. I don't have much time, but I just had to check in with ya'll!

I'll leave you with a picture of Lucy-turned-rock-star...


Between her new tutu, guitar (which was covered in stickers within 24 hours), and boa, we've got a (fancy) musical monster goin' on.

**Still don't know exactly when we will have our internet back...hopefully within the next couple of days, but who knows. And just so you know, I can read your comments (via my cell phone), so keep them coming!

Ok, I gotta go. Always on the go. Always.

Ugh. I am still without internet! We are waiting on a modem that is being mailed to us for our satellite service. I will try to get to a coffee shop soon!

My internet is totally out. Its sad, I know. So I am sending this from my phone. We had a great Christmas! I will post pics as soon as I can.

littles vs. double-digits

What is it about littles wanting to "help"...but then when they reach double-digits, they apparently join some sort of union that strictly forbids them from being helpful...right at the time when they can actually be really helpful??

3 out of our 4 children turned their noses up at pitching in to help paint the homeschool room (yes, it's coming nicely, now that we are half-way through the school year. Seriously, I'm not complaining...happy to have it whenever I can get it).

But our dependable and eager-to-please Lucy-bug was quick to volunteer her "help".

Bless that child.






Dad and Lucy had a great time together.

Oh and I've got some very special chores for the other 3,
*said with a sheepish grin*.

blog friend visit!!

Today was super fun because my blog friend Gayly and her PRECIOUS little guy, Nate, came for a visit!!



Be still my heart...is he not the cutest thing ever?!!


It took a while but Lucy and Nate finally clicked and boy, did they take off! They had a blast and giggled relentlessly.




Seriously, this little guy made my heart mushy. Oh dear...what might that mean?

alone

Yesterday I had a shopping experience that I only have a vague recollection existed before...the children.

I shopped....

ALONE.

I'll bet some of you may not even know that sort of activity is going on out there.

Let me share with you how it was...
It was glorious. Glorious beyond words. Yes indeed.

I got to push the cart...all by myself. No one pulling on me. No one telling me they have to pee once we hit the farthest point from the bathroom. No one sneaking things into my basket. No meltdowns. No one whining.

No one. Because, I was all alone (have I mentioned that?).

I didn't even mind the long lines. Well, I sorta did but I got over it quickly as I stood peacefully, alone.

I didn't mind not finding the some of the items I had one my list (even though we are alarmingly close to Christmas)...as I hunted for them, alone.

Then, all alone, I went to Starbucks. What does a gal all alone get for herself?

Gingerbread Latte, that's what.

It was a sweet time, my sweet friends. Sweet.

sunday snapshot

Ok, it's just barely Sunday still but I wanted to get in on the Sunday Snapshot action.

Macy and I made scones the other day for Christmas gifts.

Isn't she so cute?!







A few of you asked me for the recipe the last time I posted about scones but ummm, I'm really not that crazy about this recipe (really nice for those receiving them as gifts, don't you think?). I haven't had time to search for a better one but when I find one I love, I'll be sure to post it!

a simple glass of water

At-tach-ment, [uh-tach-muhnt], noun
What occurs between parent and child when a repetitive cycle of needs (physical, emotional, spiritual) are met.

Ok, that wasn't Webster, that was me. But I think my definition pretty much sums it up, right?

There. That was easy.

Oh, if only making it happen was as simple as defining it.

I pray constantly that Lord will show me new ways to build attachment with Macy. Little ways. I really love all the little ways I can meet even her smallest needs, over and over and over.

One thing she loves to do every night is take a HOT (listen, I mean really HOT) shower. Who can blame her? From what I understand there was NO hot water to shower in at her orphanage. Not even in the winter. Did you hear me? NO HOT WATER.

Anyway, after her shower every night she crawls into bed, waits for Lucy to go to sleep then turns on her little book light and reads, late into the night. Love it!

Well, one night before heading to bed she got herself a glass of water, drank a little then set it on the counter and headed to the shower. I thought that was odd since I knew she wasn't coming back into the kitchen...but yet she ALWAYS puts her dishes in the dishwasher when she's done.

*Light bulb moment*

It suddenly occurred to me that this poor girl stays up late...and is probably thirsty (and hungry for that matter) some of the time but she NEVER has the courage to come get anything from the kitchen that she may need/WANT once she is in bed. Even though I've told her that this is her house and she's free to do that. And most certainly, living in an orphanage, that wasn't ever an option.

From that night on, while she is taking her shower, I now fix her a glass of ice water (and usually a small snack) that I leave on her nightstand so that when she crawls into bed with her book, she can enjoy what the rest of us take for granted, a simple glass of water. And never again go to bed thirsty. Ever.

Another small need met.

And a little tiny bit of attachment occurs.

sister fun

Today I got to spend some time with my mom and sisters, which just rarely happens these days.

We picked up where we left off the last time...and had super fun together!





Oh and Robin, so sorry I didn't have Brenden touch up our pictures...you know, to show people how we REALLY look.

Dana, the cheesy sweatshirt needs to go. It just does.

Love you, my sweet sisters!!

how'd he do that?

Thanks for asking...

Well, I can at least tell you how he did the easy part...

Since we don't have a tri-pod, he brought in a big step ladder and taped my camera to it (gasp), ensuring that it wouldn't move (he wasn't nearly as concerned about it falling...as he was that his end product wouldn't be a success if it moved at all).

Then, he simply took pics of himself (actually, I think Nick was the photographer...I'm really not sure, all this took place while I was at the dentist with the girls).









After that, all I know is that he used Gimp to put it all together. And that's where his self-taught abilities came into play.


Oh, and the cigar was left over from his Halloween costume...


He made it out of a dowl (sp?) rod. It looks super real...even in real life. The kid is a genius. I guess this is what happens when homeschoolers get bored...they use their imagination. Imagine that!

brendens playing poker

Two posts in one day?

That's just unheard of from me these days.

But I had to show the picture Brenden made....of himself...himselves.



Brendens playing poker.

That kid is stinkin' talented.

I have yet to ask him if he has completed all his schoolwork for the day...but I think his creativity in this makes up for anything undone, at least for today.


**He will LOVE your comments, I assure you. *hint, hint*

dreaded dental work

My poor sweet Macy Shu Li...
had her very first dental procedure today.

First. Ever.

Thankfully, there's not a whole lot of work that needs to be done but because she's never had a professional cleaning, she will need to go in twice for extensive scaling (I hate that word) and will have to be numb for it. Plus, fillings.

And today she had 4 of 8 cavities filled.

Gulp.

As the dentist was explaining things, he told her that if at any point she wants him to stop, to raise her left hand.

Right then, her left hand went up. The girl had her sense of humor turned on, even as she was shaking in her tiny size 4 boots (ok, tennis shoes).

She's such a brave girl.

I'm just so tickled to be her mom, I can't even tell ya.

goin' great

What the heck??

I hopped on here to just give you a little 'howdy' and I see that
the 'center' icon is gone...it's just gone.

I am nothing if I'm not centered.

Anyhoo.

Things are going well around here.

I would say that our transition is amazingly smoother, still. I need to do a detailed post on all this but every time I try to sit down and put it all to words, it's just difficult to express. Not sure what that's about. But I can honestly say that things are really, really good. I just wish I could crawl into the brain (and heart) of our sweet girl and know what she is feeling and thinking.

I am in an almost constant prayer mode her as I simply have no control over much of it all and have to trust the Lord. That's rather difficult for this controlling Mama, but a lesson needed to be learned. No doubt. Her salvation is top on my prayer priority list...but again, that's out of my control except to live a life of Christ before her eyes.

I took some not-so-great pictures of some totally-great books that Macy is now reading.



I found the "Left Behind" series (well, the first three anyway) at this GREAT site, along with other wonderful Christian books...all in Chinese. The selection is limited but they are super cheap and wow, what a blessing these books have been! Macy is almost finished with the 2nd Left Behind book. She has also read Jonni Ericson Tadda's biography. Plus she is getting about 4 more books for Christmas that I ordered. If you have an older Chinese child, I HIGHLY recommend that you check out this site.



My friend Gayly held a giveaway on her blog and I was tickled to be the winner! The Jesus Storybook Bible is perfect for Macy because it's not written too kiddy-like but simple enough that it tells the stories of the Bible so that she can have a better understanding. We read it together, which allows us to practice her English, reading and most importantly, to learn TRUTH. Thank you, Gayly!!

Well, Blogger is doing weird things (super weird) and I have no idea if this post will even work so I better publish it before I lose it altogether.

exposing the truths of adoption

I took the girls to Awana's at the Chinese church last night.

It was fun, as usual.

As the girls were playing (it was carnival night),
one of the other moms approached
me and started asking about adoption.

She very boldly told me how brave I was, having FOUR children!
Her friend,
who was close by, listening intently,
chimed in and said to her,
"What are you talking about, you have four children!"

She quickly said, "Yes, but I didn't choose to have four."

Well,
I could see her heart and knew she meant that
of course,
she loves all of her children and WANTS
each of them...

What she was saying was that we
set out to add to our family...on purpose.

She then began telling me that adoption is really
only for rich people...right??

And that you have to have a high stature to adopt, right?

Me, stopped.dead.in.tracks.

Wow, this was an opportunity I had been looking for...
God has put on my heart to help the
sweet people in this church to fully realize
the orphan issue in this world...and in their home country.

I assured her that we are not rich.
At least not in the way she meant.
And I also assured her that my husband was
not a judge or of high stature (as she suggest he might be).

She was pretty shocked to hear that
my hubby is an electrician...and I'm a stay-at-home-mom.

I quickly told her of the resources available to
help families adopt...
but mostly,
I stressed how God WILL provide for those
He's called to serve Him in this way.

It really left me wondering
how many Christians think this way...
that adoption is only for
infertile couples...
for rich families....
for families of "high stature"....

I recently saw a statistic saying that 34% of Christians
think about adopting...
but only 1% actually do it.

You gotta be kidding me.

What if....
100% of Christians thought (PRAYED) about adopting
and perhaps somewhere around 50%
actually did??

I wonder what the orphan count of the world
would be then.

Certainly not 147 million....
as it is now.

birthday celebration ~ lucy-style

Sweet Lucy had to wait all day long
before the real celebration
of her birthday began!

Funny thing though,
she didn't once ask about her presents.

She must not have realized she was getting anything,
because she definitely has been
asking about Christmas presents already.

Anyway,
by the time everyone was home and ready to party...
she was g.r.u.m.p.y.

But if anyone can get this girly to smile,
it's Brenden...Lucy loves cards and she wasn't the least
bit disappointed with this (gawdy) one adorned
with sparkly, glittery princesses.

"Well, what's all this? Presents...for me??
Had I known, I would have been hounding you
every second of the entire day."

The favorite present.
Though this kiddy camera doesn't take the
greatest pics...Lucy LOVES it!

The best part of any birthday (in my humble opinion).
Cake.

That's all folks!

I absolutely love that pic.

happy birthday!

HaPpY BiRtHdAy,
LUCY!!!

4 never looked so
Fabulous!

long aftertaste....

Nick had a basketball tournament start tonight,
but it was about 3 hours away and
I just couldn't stop envisioning Lucy's demeanor
in such a whirlwind adventure.

SO,
the girls and I stayed home.
*sniff sniff*
I can't stand missing any games!

I told Macy we would just make noodles for
dinner.
I tossed in some chicken then let her do the rest.

I had braced myself for spiciness because
that's the only way she likes them...
and quite frankly,
I agree.

But she threw me a curve ball when she whipped
out some spicy pickled turnips/radishes
that we had bought at the Chinese market.

Gasp.
I almost told her not to put them in.
Then I, in all my motherly wisdom,
decided that since she
always tries the things I make,
I would gladly eat whatever she made.

Well,
let me just say that the flavor wasn't so much the problem
*at the time*
but the after effects were excruciating.

Look carefully....do you see there on the package where it
says, ...Long Aftertaste?

Its claims are real.
I now wonder if that was a warning or a promise.

To me,
it should have been a warning.

And aftertaste wasn't my only issue.

Anyway, I sure do appreciate how my sweet girly
went to such effort to make a lovely
dinner for Lucy and me!

Aren't they the cutest?!

Oh and just so you know,
I TRIED my darndest to get a picture of her face
but she would have nothin' of it.

And in case you are wondering...
my tummy turbulence was relatively
short-lived.

less is more

I'm bracing myself already for when Lucy becomes a teenager.
This girl LOVES makeup, nailpolish, etc., etc.

My eyeshadow deficit is because of her.
My misshapen lipstick is because of her.
My neutral brownish counter top now hinted with pink polish hues...
is well,
you know.....because of Lucy.

Ummm, let me see now...
I do believe this is layer #42.

"Hahahaha....Mama, you are so funny when you say
...less is more!"