For your reading pleasure---My List of Annoyances

We all have these things...things that annoy us. Here's a list of mine:

1) The word "Ginormous." I'm pretty certain that is NOT a word.

2) Burping or Belching or trying to hide a burp or a belch. Disgusting.

3) Spongebob! (check out the cake I had made for our friend's birthday!)

4) People who talk too much-so loudly that you can't have a side conversation.

5) Know-it-alls. If you know it all, simmer down! No one likes know it alls!

6) When people throw trash on my floor. MY HOUSE IS NOT A TRASHCAN!

7) Walmart

8) Unsolicited advice. If I want your opinion, I'll ask! Never you mind!

9) Excuses. I don't need them, just tell me straight up!

and...the final thing that annoys me?

10) Mom? Yes? Mom? Yes? Mommy? Yes? Mommy? YES! Mom? BAAAAAAAAAH! WHAT?!

Hurry Up and Wait

Dallas was Air Force for awhile. On top of that, my dad is retired Air Force. If you've been around the military for any amount of time, you hear this a lot:

HURRY UP AND WAIT.

This also pertains to adoption, as they call all the compiling of paperwork (The Dossier), the "Paperchase"(the "hurry up"). "Paperchase" makes you think that this is like running a seriously fast race, but in fact, that took quite some time, and now we wait. A lot of you have been asking lately, "What's going on with your adoption?" Well, right now, we are waiting for Immigration Pre-approval (The approval to bring home two orphans from Ethiopia). We are also waiting for Immigration to send us our FBI fingerprinting appointment date/time.

Waiting's hard since we know that there are millions of orphans waiting for mommies and daddies to tuck them in tonight, but we KNOW that God is not a MINUTE LATE.

We'll keep y'all updated in the meantime...when we hear any new news!

Thanks for praying with us!

Wednesday's Word-Can I have some wine with that?

I wanted to tell you about-and I'm going out on a limb here-MY FAVORITE VERSE. I know a lot of people have these so-called "Life verses" that they really relate to or that help them stay focused or keep their eyes fixed on Jesus. I have some of those, too. Don't get me wrong here, but THIS verse BLOWS MY MIND!

To preface this verse, I HAVE to tell you about some of the MOST AMAZING THINGS that Jesus did while he was "God made flesh." I don't mean to keep y'all in suspense, but we HAVE to take a look at a few miracles before we get to MY FAVORITE VERSE! And, unfortunately (for us all, because I LOVE this verse and can't WAIT to share it with ya), I cannot share this verse this week because there are MORE miracles to discuss before we talk about "the verse." This is NOT MEANT to frustrate you or keep you in suspense. (If you know me, you KNOW I hate secrets, suprises and suspense!)

MIRACLE #1:

I love weddings, don't you? SO much preparation! SO much decoration! SO much celebration! I think back to my "little" brother's wedding last summer. He and his wife, Katie, live in Texas, and the wedding was in Virginia at my parents' property. My mom is a fantastic designer and planner, so she planned every little detail and did a wonderful job! This planning took her months! And, the day before wedding day, she went a little bezerk (sorry mom). She was so stressed with wedding details, reception details, weather (everything was outside), and just making Josh and Katie's day extra special. And, she did NOT disappoint! Everything was wonderful...even the weather!

Each chair was perfectly positioned, and mom even left fans on each chair!

(It was August in Virginia, remember!)

Katie looked stunning after all the "prepwork" at the old mansion formerly owned by the Vanderbilts! Her makeup and hair were all professionally done, nails-perfect, too!

So many more details went in to this one day! Their reception was at a gorgeous winery nearby,and again, mom decorated beautifully. It looked lovely! No detail was left undone. And, her best friends were there to make sure everything went off without a hitch. The day prior, there were atleast five women at the winery decorating with her. And, this was just ONE...DAY.

In Biblical times, weddings were HUGE celebrations! Imagine my brother and sister-in-law's wedding...a WEEKLONG celebration, and that's what you would have experienced in Jesus's time. Imagine the amount of decorating, the amount of FOOD! And, now we're finally getting to the first miracle...the amount of WINE required for a party of that magnitude! Think nowadays. If you run out of drinks at a wedding, you probably run outta GUESTS at the wedding, right? And, NO ONE would EVER forget THAT wedding. Embarrassing!!! Multiply that by about 120, and you get the result of running out of wine at a wedding in Biblical times. I'm talkin' MAJOR PARTY FOUL!!!

We're in John chapter 2 (verses 1-11) today, and Jesus's first miracle ever. We're at a wedding at Cana in Galilee. Jesus and His disciples, and at very least, His mom, are all at this wedding. His mom scampers over, "They have no more wine." I can imagine the desperate whisper! They ran outta wine...DO SOMETHING!!! If we stopped right here, I could totally go to town on this part...did Mary know something we don't? Did Jesus do stuff like this around their house growing up? Why did Mary run to Jesus instead of someone with enough money to go buy MORE wine?! Jesus politely tells His mother "it's not time yet." She sort of brushes this aside and says to the servants, "Do whatever He tells you." HAHA! Okay, Mary, mother of the Almighty. God made flesh is standing there telling you it's not time, but you know He will not disappoint! (I wish I had that much faith!) So Jesus tells these servants, "Fill the jars with water." The jars? Yeah, they held 20-30 gallons EACH. And, having worked in a winery in my younger years, I know it takes more than, say, five minutes to make wine. These servants filled these "jars" to the brim. Jesus simply says, "Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet." Jesus had turned this water INTO WINE.

JESUS---TURNED WATER---INTO WINE.

NO GRAPES.

NO WINEPRESSES.

NO BARRELS

NO TIME---TO AGE THE GRAPE JUICE INTO WINE.

IN GOES THE WATER---OUT COMES THE WINE.

Some of us have read through this so many times we're like, Yeah, yeah, so then He turned water into wine...etc, etc, etc... THIS MIRACLE? RIDICULOUS!!!

The servants took this drink to the master of the banquet, who says, "Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now." See, Jesus performed this miracle at a Jewish wedding. At this point, He could have boasted to all the guests about making that wine, but instead, the only people that knew this happened are: His mother, the servants, and His disciples. He saved this family from complete humiliation while proving to His closest followers that He was, indeed, worth following!

To sum this up, John writes, "He thus revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him."

He "revealed His glory" through this miracle. Up until now, His disciples just knew He knew a lot about God. Some of them had heard John the Baptist say, "Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!" And, they believed that they had "found the Messiah..." But, what exactly that meant, I'm not sure they understood yet. And, so with this miracle, we begin this wild journey with Jesus...

That's the miracle of the week!

Until next week...CHEERS!

The Weekend in review:

Friday night-Bonfire on the deck. What? Yes. We have a chiminea (I have no idea how to spell that)...and yes, we almost burned the deck down...well, our friend, David, almost did.

Saturday-Slept through Naomi's gymnastics-woops! Tate's soccer game. Dallas took the kids fishing while I prepared for Saturday night...

Saturday night-Felt brave, had a family of 8 over for dinner! I actually feel accomplished to have fed 13 people on the deck that night while averting the wasps! whew! That was FUN! Kids everywhere and nowhere to be seen at the same time, which freed us up to get to know the mom and dad of these fabulous 6!

Sunday-church, lunch out with two of our former YL kids, Young Life dessert thing, ran five miles, had our high school friends over, which turned in to another deck bonfire (so sorry if you're a tree hugger) followed by RIVER MONSTERS! woowee! FYI: I watch 45 minutes of River Monsters, and then we come to the part where we actually FIND the River Monsters, and I spend the next fifteen minutes each time looking away from the tv saying, "GROSS!" Oddly enough, at one point, I was a Marine Biology major.


But the Good News this glorious Monday Morning is this:

And, if you don'tknow what this is all about, contact me, and I'll help you dig out from under your rock. !)

Naomi's Preschool Graduation!

Naomi makes her public speaking debut HERE!

To hear Naomi singing her Extraterrestrial Song, click ">HERE!

What a GREAT staff Trinity has! I went to Kindergarten Orientation tonight and found myself wondering if she was OVERPREPARED for school next year! What a great problem! Thank you, Mrs. Fitz and Mrs. Colbert!

Mrs. Fitz and Mrs. Colbert pose for a quick shot in front of the quilt Mrs. Fitz made of the kids' handprints!

Look at our little grad! She's so excited for Kindergarten next year!

Hear Trinity Nursery School's Goodbye Song HERE!

We're proud of you, Naomi!!! You did a GREAT JOB in front of all those people tonight!!!

Wednesday's Word-DO YOU LOVE ME?

Some of you may not have been around for the beginning of the Wednesday series on Peter and Jesus. Since we can safely assume that Peter was Jesus's BFF while he was on earth, I think it's worthwhile to dig a little deeper into their friendship. Check out the first three weeks below, and then let's get started!

Peter series-1, Peter series-2, Peter series-3

We're comin' atcha from John 21 today! It's been about 10 days since Peter had betrayed Jesus. Jesus has appeared to the disciples (Peter included) twice already, and they have not had the chance to talk things out yet. Have you ever ended a conversation or relationship with absolutely no opportunity to make things right again? This must have been pretty uncomfortable for Peter (being with Jesus again with no reconciliation) because all these guys were with Peter and Jesus when Jesus told Peter that he would disown Him three times. They were all there when Peter begged to differ, and John was an eyewitness to Peter disowning Jesus. I'm SURE the rest of these guys knew the entire story. It's accounted for in ALL FOUR GOSPELS. It's interesting that Jesus reinstating Peter is only accounted for in John.

So Peter, being a fisherman, decides to go fishing, and his buddies (the disciples) go with him. Fished ALL NIGHT...caught nothing. Then Jesus stands ashore and calls out, telling them how to catch fish. When they catch the fish, they realize it's Jesus. Notice this: Peter's in the boat...a distance from shore. Jesus is on shore, calling out. When they realize that it's Jesus, Peter jumps ship and swims back to shore. He seemed to be trying to bridge this gap between himself and Jesus no matter the cost. Was he just past the point of waiting for reconciliation? Did he need a couple minutes alone with his Lord? A couple minutes to reconcile this relationship? Well, he didn't actually get that conversation after all. Jesus waits until the rest of the guys are back ashore and have eaten breakfast before He approaches the subject, and THIS...is how it went down.

First, we need to define LOVE. We have one measely word for LOVE in the English language, and it's OVERUSED and UNDERAPPRECIATED. I'm talking, I'm not even sure any of us truly understand what it is anymore, overused. In Biblical times, there were several words for love, but we'll focus on two: AGAPE and PHILEO (since they are the two used in the following scenario)

AGAPE: A love that comes from your soul. Loving with all your heart, soul, mind, strength. This is the love that is mentioned in Matthew 22: 37, 39, where Jesus defines what the GREATEST COMMANDMENT is. This is how we are supposed to love the Almighty, with a love that's so deep and wide that by seeing this kind of love, one can see the very person of Christ.

PHILEO: A brotherly love. To be personally attached to someone.

Because Peter's sin was laid out for all the disciples to see. Jesus reconciled that relationship for all the disciples to see. They were all there, and Jesus says, "...do you truly AGAPE me more than these?" (Jn 21: 15) Jesus wants to know how deeply and truly Peter loves Him. Peter's reply? "Yes, Lord...you know that I PHILEO you." I love how transparent Peter is with Jesus here. And, all these others are around to hear this. I also wonder if Peter is being a little hard on himself. Think about it. If it were ME in that situation, I think I would be thinking "Of course I don't AGAPE Him. If I HAD, I would not have disowned Him! I'm going to call this love PHILEO because I'm pretty sure AGAPE love is not the "save your own hide" kind of love I expressed on that fateful night."

Jesus replies, "Feed my lambs."

Jesus asks him again, "Simon son of John, do you truly AGAPE me?" Peter, again, "Yes, Lord, you know that I PHILEO you."

Jesus replies, "Take care of my sheep."

A third time, Jesus asks, but changes his definition of love to see if they now match up, "Simon son of John, do you PHILEO me?" Peter was hurt this time, the Bible says, because Jesus asked him a third time, but I wonder if, it was the changing of the word to PHILEO that hurt. This time, in Peter's mind, Jesus got it right. And, let's face it, the truth hurts. Reconciliation sometimes hurts.

Jesus replied, "Feed my sheep...Follow me!"

This conversation must have been pretty intense...and very healing. Notice Jesus didn't come at Peter with a list of things Peter did wrong. He didn't lecture Peter about how he should have acted. He didn't say, "Don't do it again." Jesus forgave even before Peter had the chance to ask for forgiveness. He spoke healing words in to Peter. Jesus bridged the gap that Peter tried earlier to swim.

I think it would be wise to mention that Jesus STILL does this today. He doesn't come at me with a list of all the things I do wrong, but rather, waits with open arms for when I run back to Him. He doesn't give me some guilt trip when I mess up daily. He forgives freely when I go to Him with a heart grieved over the fact that my sin, again, separated me from Him. He speaks words of healing to ME! Jesus bridges the gap that I try to fill but can't. And, I think it's worthy to note that EVEN IF my love for Him is PHILEO and not AGAPE, He still desires a relationship with me.

Lily "The Goldfish"

Today was Naomi's last official day of preschool. Today was "Bring your pet to school day." Since bringing Molly, our dog, to school would have been nothing short of disastrous, we decided to bring Lily, Naomi's pet goldfish.

To backtrack slightly, LILY, is actually Lily the Third. Naomi won Lily I at Tate's school's Family Fun Night. Lily I died. Dallas replaced Lily I before ANYONE noticed. He didn't even tell ME Lily I died.

Enter Lily II. I walked into Naomi's room one morning and GASPED. Lily's dead! SHE'S DEAD! WhatdoIdo? WhatdoIdo?!! Quick! Keep Naomi out of her room! That same day, Naomi told me how she sang to Lily and that Lily is now her "best friend." This is-well, WAS, a well loved goldfish! I did not know you could have quite such a dynamic relationship with a FISH! We had Kindergarten Orientation that day, where she told the teacher all about her pet Lily. Meanwhile, I'm mouthing (from behind Naomi) "LILY DIED LAST NIGHT!" When we got home, I called Dallas and told him the bad news and that he was going to have to bring home a new goldfish to sneak into Lily I's tank. This is where I found out that this was Lily II we were talking about. He did bring home another Lily that night, though, and I'm happy to say that Lily III is tougher than Lily I AND Lily II combined!

So, it's "Bring your pet to school" day today. Naomi, bright-eyed-and-bushy-tailed, awoke by 7am. I was in the shower, so Naomi took the liberty of getting Darby out of bed at 7:02. By 7:25, five minutes before I usually wake everyone up, everyone was dressed, ready, and downstairs breaking bowls. I, however, was upstairs cleaning Lily's fishtank. By 7:48 we had a clean fishtank, 3 kids ready for school, and a broken bowl in the trash. I drained a little bit of water from the bowl, wrapped Lily's bowl in a towel, and buckled in. By that, I mean that I had Lily wrapped in a towel and buckled into MY seatbelt with me. Despite the "clean" tank, I gagged because now the fish smell was RIGHT UNDER MY NOSE. So, I carefully departed. About 1/2 mile later, I hit a bump and the bowl tilted ever-so-slightly and poured water right down the front of my shirt. Thankfully, Lily III is a smarty fish. She was safe in the bowl. We arrive at preschool, fish in tact. Now, I carefully carried Darby in one arm and a FISHBOWL in the other as other, smarter, parents breezed into school with their dogs and geckos easily in tote. Lest you forget that I just spilled half a fishbowl's worth of water down the front of my newly perfumed shirt, I will remind you that these (smarter) parents were...NOT...WET. Lily the Third made it to and from school today, and unless she dies later of sea sickness from transport, our dynamic relationship with Lily the Third continues!

Is it just ME?

Is it just me, or is everything out of place on this thing? Just wondering...

Wednesday's Word-OH, NO! That guy KNOWS me!

I wish I could blame the slight delay in posting this on the fact that Blogger was down for about two days, but the truth is, I've been sick...and busy. So, Wednesday's Word is comin' atcha today, Friday!

I want to keep going on this interaction between Peter and Jesus. So, remember last week how Jesus told Peter he would deny Him three times before the rooster crowed? Yeah? Well, then Peter told Jesus, "...even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you." And, here we are. This week's "word" can be found in ALL FOUR GOSPELS (Matt 26, Mk 14, Lk 22, and Jn 18).

Jesus is now being questioned by the High Priest (at the H.P's HOUSE). This "other" disciple followed Jesus to the High Priest's house alongside Peter. These two "followed at a distance," but this "other" (unnamed) disciple went right into the courtyard while Peter waited at the entrance. This other disciple came and talked the girl at the gate (a female Bouncer?) into letting Peter in as well. They're now sitting by the fire with servants and officials of the High Priest.

DENIAL #1: This servant girl carefully studies Peter and finally says, "You also were with that Nazarene, Jesus." Peter's reply? "I don't know or understand what you are talking about." (Mk 14: 67, 68) Then he got up and left the courtyard. He went back to the entryway. WHY? He makes up TWO lies: I don't KNOW what you're talking about and I don't UNDERSTAND what you're talking about. Then he bails on the conversation? Peter went somewhere where he could be less conspicuous, a place where there were more people around where he could just fade into the crowd, and where he could make a quick getaway if need be. What happened to the bold Peter who was so bent on proving his allegiance to Jesus that he cut Malchus's ear off?!

DENIAL #2: Here, Peter's at the gateway where another girl saw him and said, "This fellow was with Jesus of Nazareth." (Matt 26: 71) Peter denied this claim again! This time with an OATH! "I don't know the man!" Remember, Jesus, all the while, is being questioned by the high priest and is not denying anything...even though all these lies were being fired His way. Meanwhile, Peter is denying ALL these true things so he can save his own skin.

DENIAL #3: THIS time, a servant of the High Priest comes up to him. This servant was the brother of Malchus (the guy whose ear Peter cut off). This guy would have been CERTAIN of who Peter was! An HOUR has now passed. This man says, "Certainly this fellow was with Him, for he is a Galilean." (Galileans had a distinguishable accent...think Boston.) At this point, Peter's stressed out. "He began to call down curses on himself and he swore to them 'I DON'T KNOW THIS MAN YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT!'"

Cue rooster.

"The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter." (Lk 22:60)

Eyes locked.

Peter remembers...

"Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times." (Lk 22: 34)

I can't even imagine the intensity of that moment. Peter's heart must have just been POUNDING! This guy KNOWS me! He KNOWS I know Jesus! I'm as good as dead! And then, in the middle of all the noise, the questioning, the rooster crows. This must have been going in slow motion for him. That sort of slow motion where you can hear your own heartbeat in your ear. It all came back. ALL these conversations he'd had with Jesus...and he lost it.

"He went outside and wept bitterly." (Matt 26: 75)

I kind of think of relationships we might have with friends or family. You know, the relationships that seem "unfixable." Someone has betrayed you or hurt you beyond something that can be humanly restorable. How could Peter claim that he'd DIE for Jesus on the same day that he DENIED Him THREE TIMES?!

Next week, we're going to talk about restored relationships. There's hope! Have a great week!

Thursday, May 12, 2011

Wednesday's Word

Just a little note to say I have NOT FORGOTTEN Wednesday's Word this week! I've been sick and super busy with our last Younglife Club of the year. I have been working on it, and I'll be bringing Wednesday's Word on Friday this week! :) Have a great day!

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Frederick Running Festival-2011

We did it! Stewart, Elizabeth and I all met our goals!

Stewart finished 5 minutes under 2 hours.

Elizabeth finished! (in 2:23! I'm proud of her time!)

And, I didn't really have a goal, but finished in 2:16. I'm happy with that.

My little racers blew away their competition and had fun in their first race! They're both looking forward to the mile kid's run at the Firecracker 5K this July!
Me after my race and my kids getting pumped up for their race!


Tate sprints to the finish line!

Naomi breezed by, making running look so easy!

And...the half marathoners!

Friday, May 06, 2011

Pre-race Jitters

LAST MINUTE THOUGHT ON MY FIRST HALF MARATHON SINCE 2008:

Circa 7 o'clock this evening: "No problem! I'm just gonna run full steam ahead and KILL myself to beat my last half marathon time! I can do ANYTHING for two hours!"

Naomi at circa 7:15 tonight: "Mommy, is THIS what I'm wearing when I run my 10 mile race tomorrow?" (You heard her correctly, folks. She thinks she's running TEN miles tomorrow)

About 15 minutes ago: "What am I thinking?!! I've only run a total of 13 miles in the last two weeks!"

Do I sound schizophrenic? I'm going to chalk this up to pre-race jitters.

Wednesday, May 04, 2011

Wednesday's Word-YOU JUST CUT THAT GUY'S EAR OFF!

So, last week, we talked about how Jesus told Peter that before the rooster crowed, he would disown Jesus THREE TIMES! Peter's reply? "Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you." Matt 26: 35

Peter now has something to "prove," right? I mean, if you've ever put yourself out there to where your very integrity is at stake, you're DEFINITELY going to be right! You have EVERYTHING to prove and "your word" to lose...oh, and PRIDE! So, Peter's now antsy about making SURE he does NOT disown Jesus! If there was ANYTHING he was going to prove Jesus wrong about...THIS WAS IT!!!

We're talking from John 18: 1-11, but focusing on verses 10 and 11.

Jesus and His buddies are hanging out at their local hangout--The Olive Grove---(The Mt. of Olives). All of the sudden, a detachment of soldiers and some officials from the chief priests and Pharisees show up, led by Jesus's former disciple, Judas Iscariot. These guys were ARMED and LOOKING for a reason to kill Jesus, and Jesus and all His disciples knew it. So there is this interaction between Jesus and Judas, and then Jesus and the officials (which I'm totally coming back to in a couple weeks!). Finally, this band of people who came to arrest Jesus made their arrest. Jesus, the Man who never sinned, was now in handcuffs.

In Luke 22: 49, we find that during this arrest, his followers realized they were about to take Jesus into custody, so they question Jesus, "Lord, should we strike with our swords?" But, Peter wasn't waiting around for the opportunity to come for someone to accuse HIM of disowning Jesus. He decided to take matters into his own hands! He was going to PROVE to Jesus that he meant what he said when he said he would never disown Jesus or he would DIE trying! He drew his sword, and took a swing...cutting off the EAR of Malchus, a servant of the High Priest.

Jesus's response to this?
1) "Put your sword back in its place...Do you think I cannot call on my Father and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels?" (Matt 26: 52, 53).

2) "...and He touched the man's ear and healed him." Luke 22:51 JESUS JUST HEALED THIS GUY'S EAR! THE GUY WHO CAME FOR THE VERY PURPOSE OF ARRESTING HIM!

3) And Jesus says to Peter in John 18: 11, "Put your sword away! Shall I not drink the cup the Father has given me?" The Man who, that VERY NIGHT, was praying FERVENTLY for God to make a way to take this cup from him, told Peter the cup had to be drunk, and He would be the one to do it.

So, Peter might have been a little overzealous to prove his loyalty to the King, but you know how it goes...you're trying to "prove yourself"...you get a bit prideful if your reputation is on the line and people are looking to you for leadership.

The thing of it is...after all this commotion, "...ALL the disciples deserted him and fled" leaving Jesus alone in "The Grove" with a detachment of armed soldiers, a bunch of people who hated him and wanted to KILL Him, and His betrayer, Judas. Did not ONE of the disciples want to stay? When push came to shove, they ALL...LEFT. Not ONE stayed.

Not even Peter.

Tuesday, May 03, 2011

What Younglife Means To Me

We've come to the end of our final semester leading Young Life in the town in which we started Young Life. In total, we've been volunteering with Young Life for 8 years. Eight of the most fantastic years! We've been down the biggest tubing hill I've ever seen in my life---AT NIGHT---attached by tube to atleast 30 other people! We have gone to so many high school basketball games, track meets, soccer games, football games, etc...more than you can imagine! We've had 100 people in our basement every Tuesday night and 25 more on Wednesdays over the years. We've had moments where I've been in fear for my life (YOU try sailing with one high school girl when NEITHER of you know how to sail!), moments where I've nearly laughed myself into a tizzy (watch an 80 pound freshman girl get launched into the sky on a water tube, or a girl unable to ride a BIKE until she realizes the handlebars are backwards!). I've even broken bones at Young Life camp. I've had moments where I've cried with "my girls," laughed with "our guys" and been um, "misunderstood" by people in general. Most of my "Top Ten Friends" are not even twenty yet, and I wouldn't have it any other way. ...and it's all coming to a close.

I've cried and cried and prayed and prayed about this. And, in talking with a lot of other people about stepping back from one ministry to step into another ministry, I've learned that grief is normal. I've talked with people who have very amazing youth ministry going on, and they are about to step into full-time missions in ETHIOPIA! They, too, are grieving "losing" their ministry and their community, their church, and to a certain extent, their family, all-the-while being very excited for what God WILL DO!

So, while we're sad to step back from Young Life leadership, we're excited because we now have the opportunity to prepare our family of five to become a family of SEVEN! And, we will remember how amazing it was to serve God through Younglife, and we will be excited to see what God WILL DO! And, of course, we are excited for "our Younglife kids" to join us in watching God expand our family through the miracle of adoption!

Watch the video our friends made us HERE.

Monday, May 02, 2011

Poison Darts

So, if you know me, you probably know that I often wish I was a CIA agent or some other special ops-type job. "I'm pretty sure I could kick anyone's butt...once." I'm actually quoting myself when I drove a bunch of my Young Life girls into inner city Philly last summer-at night. Nevermind the fact that I've only shot two REAL guns, I mean "weapons," in my life. The first-blasted the snot outta a pumpkin! YEAH! The second one had a laser beam on it, and I freaked out and couldn't even shoot it. So, yeah...good thing I have a fall back plan. You don't often need weapons as a stay-at-home mom. Until...tonight!

Tate and Dallas began this nerf gun war. "Mom! Do you want to play?!" Me: "NO! You're having plenty of fun with Daddy!" Well, I was caught in the crossfire one too many times, and that was IT! (At this point, they had abandoned the guns and gone straight to throwing bullets, I mean, darts!) So, we're launching bullets at each other. Tate's hitting me point blank--IN THE FACE! NO MERCY, I tell ya! And, I'm missing my target left and right. I would have been dead about 37 times at which point I found myself saying, "I'm not as good as being a special agent as I thought I was!"

Next thing you know, Dallas invents this game called "POISON DART." Rules: Throw darts at your opponent. If you hit their limbs, they cannot use them for a minute. If you hit anything else, they can't use it for a minute. So, Naomi grabs a dart and hits Dallas's butt and says, "DADDY! YOU CAN'T USE YOUR BUTT NOW!" Hmm...what a shame.

After a little while, I must admit, the game got completely outta hand. Tate was found to have handfuls, I'm talkin' 17-30 darts, running up and just plastering you with them...and he's a GOOD SHOT! Dallas was a sweaty mess, and I'm pretty sure I'm going to have a couple nerf dart sized bruises on my face tomorrow. Game over.

So, my dream of kickin' butt and takin' names is slowly drifting away...

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