devastated

I woke up to tragic news this morning.

My nephew's 14-month old daughter, Chloe, died in her sleep,
with no apparent cause.

Our family is devastated.

alone

If a grin could be heard, you'd definitely hear mine right about now.

I had the most fabulous day with Brenden doin' the college-tour thing.

Love, love, love this school. Love it.

He's there for the evening,

participating in various student activities and spending the night

in a dorm.

Me?

Thanks for asking.

I am in a hotel room ALL by myself

(that's where my loud grin comes in).

I can't decide what I like best about this scenario...

the remote all to myself?

a king-size bed all for little ol' me?

my unlimited computer time?

the magazine I plan to read later, uninterrupted?

the fact that I ate dinner in bed?

Oh, it's ALL of those things.

But truly, I miss my family terribly. Terribly!

I will try to endure this with bravery though.

Oh, oh.

But I must tell you about the texting conversation I had with Nick (back home) this morning.

I was checking in with him because he was supposed to pick Macy up from

her second day of math class.

Me: "Did you get Macy from school OK? DON'T answer if you are driving."

Nick: "Ya, I guess.

And I'm totally driving with my feet and texting at the same time, Mom."

Me: "You give me gray hair, kid!!"

Nick: "No, I'm pretty sure that's because you're old."

Me: "Christmas is just around the corner, smarty pants!"

Nick: "I'm sorry, Mommy! I love you!"

Me: "Too late."

Heehee.

Anyway, I gotta go. I've got so much to do.

Grin.

:)

4,568 things to do

Hello, friends.

I have exactly 47 seconds to post something,
then I gotta get movin' on the
4,568 things I MUST do today.

I'm sitting at my desk with a 7" stack of papers to rummage
through in order to get all our grant stuff
sent out TODAY...plus my there's a grocery list in there
somewhere.
And my Bible study.
But that's right on top, so at least my priorities are in order.
Whew.

I'm really excited though because tomorrow morning
at 4 AM (well, that part I'm so not excited about),
Brenden and I leave to go visit a college.

Woo!

His very first college visit.

Wait a minute.
That makes me extremely sad.

Anyway, we'll have a great time!

And he's spending the night in a dorm, just like the big kids.

And I'm spending the night in a hotel room,
ALL BY MYSELF,
just like a big girl.

I'm super stoked about that...
but also sad cause I really want my main man
(OK, my only man)
there with me.

Maybe next time.

OK, gotta go!!!!

Oh, oh, oh!
Macy is starting Honors Algebra II at a real-deal school today!
I know it's shocking,
but I just couldn't teach her math.
So, off she will go to her very first American school experience.

Oh my....that's kinda scary actually.
Please pray for my sweet, quiet girl, would you?

the winner {oh the irony}

Well, I'm totally cracking up because of who
won my little Starbucks gift card giveaway.

I swear to ya,
every one of you had an equal chance at winning...

but Nick randomly picked

Patty!

The reason it's funny is, I just won a Starbucks card from
her in a giveaway she did last week.

I'm not even sure why we are both contributing to
each other's adoption fundraisers...
we're basically just exchanging money (and prizes)
back and forth.

Oh and for added fun,
I posted a pic (taken very recently) of our boys together
on my other blog.

another happy birthday!

Today is a special day for a very special boy,
clear over in China.

A special day indeed because it's our newest son's
BiRtHdAy!!

12 years old!

After having such a fun day celebrating Macy's big day,
it makes me so sad that we couldn't shower
him with gifts, hugs, and love as well.

But we did what we could do,
which was, have a cake delivered to him!

And as a way to celebrate here,
and to do a little mini-fundraiser,

I thought it would be fun to give away a $12 Starbucks gift card!

If you would like to join in the fun,
a generous donation of $12 in honor of our boy's 12th birthday,
will add your name to the drawing!

Just click on the ChipIn icon on the sidebar to donate.


Oh, and I'll bet you'd like to see pics of our boy
getting his cake, wouldn't you?

Smile.

Swing on over to my private blog to see 22 of them!

If you don't have an invitation to view it,
please EMAIL me.
loriatjoyunspeakable@yahoo.com

Thanks, ya'll!!


I'll do the drawing tomorrow (Wednesday) morning!

52 pounds of laundry

Whatever should I post about?

I just don't know.

Today I've been busy putting the gazillion+ pictures
that are on my computer onto an external
hard drive.
My computer has been acting all-too weird and I'm sweating
bullets that I'm going to wake up one day,
and poof, it's all gone.
*Chills*
Especially since I hardly ever take the time to print any of them.

And I've also been working on some grant applications.
Lord, have mercy.
If I had a dime for every form I've filled out for adoption-related
stuff....well, I wouldn't need to be applying for grants.

Let's see...I did 52 pounds of laundry.

Oh and I had a wonderful little Bible study time with
my precious friend, Angela.
I love my online study gals but nothing replaces real-life
friends to gather with.
(Judy, we missed you so much!)

So that was my day in one big boring nut shell.

Perhaps Tuesday will bring something gloriously fabulous.
You just never know...

Actually, I DO know.

*wink, wink*

Please check back here mid-day, OK?

a very happy birthday

Macy had a wonderful birthday!
We had a lovely gathering to celebrate her big day,
and she enjoyed gifts galore.

And her big gift from us.....

Her very own camera.
She is so happy!

When I asked her what kind of cake she wanted me to make,
she wasn't sure....I rattled off several suggestions,
but when I said cheesecake, she jumped on the idea.

An almond cheese cake that is to die for.
Sorry...not sharing this special recipe. Naughty of me, I know.

A very happy birthday for a very deserving girl.

today is the day of salvation

Today is a really big day!!

Macy's Birthday!!

**15**

We will celebrate later today and I'll show ya pics afterwards.

:)



*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

BUT...
yesterday was a big day too.

Really big.

For the last couple months Lucy has been talking to me about
having Jesus in her heart.
Well, based on what she would say I knew she hadn't actually
made that decision but was definitely being softened
by the Holy Spirit.

So last night our conversation at bedtime went as usual
until I asked her if she wanted to ASK Jesus
into her heart.

She said YES.

Gasp!!!

But first I wanted to make sure she really understood what
that meant (the best that a 4-year old can comprehend that...which
is actually more than some adults).

So I explained to her that we are sinners and we need a Savior
to forgive us of those sins.

Me,
"Lucy, do you know what sin is?"

Lucy,
"Yes. It's when I hit, spit, and scratch."

Heeheehee.

Yes, those were her exact words.
She apparently does know what sin is.
Good to know.

So we proceeded to pray a prayer of salvation,
and she declared her decision to follow Jesus.

I weep as I write this.

Another soul saved.
Angels are rejoicing right this very minute.

She couldn't contain her excitement and had to get up
and tell her daddy.

He choked up with tears over her life-altering decision
and told her how very happy he was!

She grinned like never before.

And she was so disappointed that her brothers weren't home
to tell them also.
It nearly brought her to tears because she wanted
them to know so badly.

She can announce her news to the world today.

There is NO bigger decision than that.

How about you?

Have YOU made that decision?

would you consider....

I just wanted to pass this info on that I received from our agency:

A 13-year-old boy urgently needs to be adopted before he ages out in January. We are counting on your help to spread the word about the need for homestudy-ready family to adopt this terrific boy ASAP. Please feel free to repost this information!

He is a computer whiz, has a good sense of humor, a repaired cleft lip and a blood disorder, but he has been tested for HIV and is negative. Emergency exceptions can be granted for families interested him, and families can adopt him with another child.

This boy is in Asia and this adoption requires travel. We had a devoted family for him, but due to circumstances beyond their control they could not complete this adoption. We need a homestudy-ready family that has started their immigration work in order to complete this adoption on time.

Ask about Child ID#: LZ-0197-16675-01

When we met with this 13-year-old boy he spoke in a soft voice but clearly stated that his main interest is computers! His favorite subject in school is computers and his favorite out-of-school activity is working on computers. He has a repaired cleft lip and palate but his speech is understandable, though as he counted in English a slight lisp was noticeable. Although he is a bit shy, he did ask if everyone in the room was supposed to be speaking in English! Watching him later in our meetings, it was clear that he has an engaging personality and a good sense of humor, likes to entertain others and is a leader among the other children. He showed a competitive, but very appropriate, spirit in the group games. By breakfast of the second day, he had lost any shyness, not hesitating to approach our staff and asking with a smile the English word for an item he held up—a hardboiled egg. This nice boy is need of a family! He has a blood disorder, but he has been tested for HIV and is negative.

Requirement waivers: Waivers can be requested if you do not meet some of the requirements for adopting from China. If you are married, we can ask for exceptions to the adoption requirements (i.e., if you are over the age limit of 54, somewhat over the BMI limit of 40, somewhat under the income/net worth, or have medical conditions, etc.).

Financial Aid: A family of any income is eligible for grants/waivers ranging up to $9,550 in aid for this particular child. There is a $4,200 Promise Child grant and the $250 WACAP application fee is waived. Please also ask about up to $4,000 in reductions possible on a case-by-case basis and a new private donation for this adoption of $1,000. There is no fee to ask for this child's information file. Please also ask your tax consultant about $13,000-plus Adoption Tax Credit.

Please contact WACAP’s Family Finders department for more information on this child, or any of the many children waiting for families right now. FamilyFinders@wacap.org or . Please reference Child ID#: LZ-0197-16675-01.

cheep, cheep

This morning we were up with the chickens because

well, we received a call from the post office
that our chickens had arrived.

Baby chickens, that is.

They came all safe, sound cute and cuddly.
That's a lot to pack in one little box.

Lucy finally woke up and was tickled to see her newest friends.
Meaning....
Heaven-help-me-I-can't-keep-my-sticky-little-hands-off-these-creatures.

And every time she got to hold them...
Wow, stop the world, she experienced happiness at an unheard of level.

I tell you what.
This child just giggles with sheer delight when
she picks up these chicks.

It is the sweetest thing ever.

I think we'll order a new batch every month
just to experience this amount
of joy over and over.




OK, maybe not.

messy-bed-head

What do these pictures say to YOU?

That I have the most wonderful teenagers who jump
in and help out when they see a need?



-OR-



That someone got tired of seeing his little sister still in
her pajamas and messy-bed-head at almost NOON and took
matters into his own hands because Mom apparently
wasn't going to?




Let's choose the first one.

OK?

**reverse psychology**

So I'm here to confess that I've used reverse psychology
on my children.

Right or wrong,

I've done it.

I vividly remember a time when my boys were little
and I told Brenden,

"You know what? I do not want you to eat broccoli.
Because it will make you big and strong
and I don't want that to happen. I want you to stay
my little boy forever. So whatever you do,
DO NOT eat broccoli. Got it?"

Well, as any mom can imagine,
his response was anything but agreeable.
A little boy longing to be big like his father simply
couldn't resist a magic formula to gain such splendor.

He ate it.

And still does.

Heehee.

So once again I am taking this approach with this very child.

You see
(and I'm certain he won't care that I share this with you...
seriously, he won't),
this oldest man-boy of mine is a slob.
Clothes everywhere, bed is never made, dirty dishes strewn about,
trash deprived of ever seeing a place of proper burial,
etc., etc., etc.

My advanced apologies to my future daughter-in-law.
I can assure you I will take you on countless shopping trips
to make up for the cross you will someday bear.

However,
I've taken a new (old) approach.
I cleaned up his room, spic and span.

I even make his bed for him every single day.
(Yes, he is 17 years old).

I do everything, in his words, except leave a mint on the pillow.
Note to self: Buy some mints.

My theory is,
perhaps he will grow to love his room being all neat and tidy.
And perhaps once he is on his own and sees
that it simply doesn't happen by mere coincidence,
he will take the initiative to...

*I don't know*

CLEAN IT HIMSELF!


Now,
check back with me in about five years and I'll let
you know how this little experiment turns out.

:)

dancin'

Super news!

Our dossier is on its way to China, baby!

But, there's a snag.

Isn't there always.

I forgot to write an employment letter for myself.
Or should I say, an unemployment letter.

Dang it!

I can't believe I completely overlooked that.
Actually, I can.

So, our agency is going to go ahead and send our dossier
in grand hopes of the CC** being OK with not
having it.

But in the meantime I'll write the letter, get it notarized, certified,
authenticated, blah, blah, blah.

Just in case they ask for it.

Sigh.

I so do get in the way of myself sometimes.

Anyhoo.

Moving on to something fun...


I bought this teen dance video for Macy.

She absolutely loves it!

And a little someone else loves it too.
It's soooo much fun to watch them cut-a-rug.

And for some odd reason they both find it necessary to
show me how dirty their socks are afterwards.

Whatever.

family time {fiercely protected}

The King-daddy of our house is fiercely protective of our

family time.
The boys are often scattered here and there at their
activities or friends' houses...which is great,
we love that.

But we see to it that we make ample time together.

It is seldom that anyone is allowed to wander to their
bedrooms alone during peak "visitation hours".

So last night was pretty much business as usual,
only this time we took advantage of the incredibly beautiful
evening, lit a campfire, and played outside.

Nick and Lucy tandem-scootering.
Brenden giving his soon-to-be main-mode of college
transportation a whirl.
We practiced working on senior pics.

I've concluded that we will hire a professional.

My sweet Macy is far less shy of the camera
than she used to be.

Though there are days that seem like set-backs,
I can easily see that we've made good
solid progress over the last year.

And very recently,
we've made leaps of it.

I feel like a buffalo next to her.

As I've mentioned before, she is really into photography.
I dug out the book to my camera and she
devoured it as she warmed her feet by the fire.

Then she got to work...

And I took a few myself...

Because she's just too sweet not to capture on camera.

It was a beautiful night in every way.