Finally a family of Seven!

2008-02-07T14:36:00.001-08:00

Our new blog address is:
http://bedlamatthebradshaws.blogspot.com/

2007-05-07T07:11:00.000-07:00

We had a girls day out for Cinco De Meyo! We went to Madrid, to a FolK Art Museam, and saw some SiFi charactors! Hannah was too scared of their costumes and stood back about 25 feet:)

2007-05-05T14:58:00.000-07:00

Here is Maree's new hair style. It is called hair crocheting. She is about 65% done here, we have to finish up the bottom. She is LOVING having longer hair:)

2007-05-01T17:47:00.000-07:00

Meya finally got to get her hair relaxed. She is having fun playing with her hair!

2007-04-09T09:06:00.000-07:00

I am a pretty unfeminine person, Im not sure where this girl came from! She will look for red markers, to pretend she is wearing lipstick! Here she is with her first fake nails:)

2007-04-09T07:22:00.000-07:00

Here are the kids at the VERY cold egg hunt. It didnt stop them from bringing home 20 pounds of sugar, but we were in and out of there in about 12 minutes. It was about 23 degrees, with snow flurries!!
Easter morning, the girls first Easter baskets!
Easter morning, on our way to church. By this time, Hannah was crying, and Luke was sick of looking at the camera. All that effort in vein.

2007-04-09T07:04:00.000-07:00

The girls learning how to roller skate! This is where they spent most of the first day and half of the second:) Once I showed Journee how to stop, that cut her falls in half. I now know why they invented, Knee pads, Elbow pads, helmets, and Wrist pads!! Im just not sure why there arent butt pads yet:)
Here is what the neighbors were intertained with the past two days.
Journee is a very determined strong will person and insisted on learning with roller blades, but Meya, felt more safe on old school roller skates. They are doing great!!

2007-04-04T22:18:00.000-07:00

Here are the loose hefers, we had passed the bull at this point. I didnt think taking a pic of a loose bull was my best decision, but the hefers looked less intimidating:)

Yeah, we drove on this road for 30 minutes! It was rough, and I was worried the first 20 minutes when we didnt see any other cars. But, once we passed the loose bull, I felt comfortable enough to pull over and let the kids go to the bathroom, and we couldnt find any public restrooms............
Yup... A self serve garage sale, on a dirt road half way to the Canyon.........hummmmm.

2007-04-04T22:03:00.000-07:00

I took the girls to Chaco Canyon on Saturday, while Luke and Dad had a boys day. It was about a three and a half hour drive each way, but it was well worth it. About 10 pics into the trip my camera went dead, but I will share what I got. The Canyon are from 850 to 1200 AD, this is believed to be where the first Native Americans lived, or close to the first. It was a site to see! Next time we go, it would be great to spend a whole day and learn everything the right way:)

2007-04-04T21:49:00.000-07:00

Here is one of the kids pics I am NOT using for Easter cards, but it was cute:)

2007-04-03T09:01:00.000-07:00

Several of my friends recently did a "Day in the Life of..." on their blogs. Since my everyday life is fairly boring, I decided to do my day, when I got a break to take a road trip! Once Calvin got home from being out of town for over three weeks (eek!), I hit the road with just my camera, deoderant, and a little cash. I had a blast, drove up to Taos, stayed the night in Santa Fe. The second day, I drove back through Madrid, and got a pic of where they filmed "Wild Hogs". I had a blast and felt like the carefree old KT again:)
Enjoy!

2007-04-03T08:51:00.000-07:00

Here is an interesting junk yard, Im not sure what "open" meant:)
This is the diner where they filmed "Wild Hogs", the set was built by Disney.
I met a neat lady back in one of these shops that taught me alot about turquoise.
Here's one of the towns dogs that I petted. Madrid is a really neat town, a must visit!!

2007-04-02T21:19:00.000-07:00

There was an off road strip in Santa Fe where people sold "stuff"!
NM is beautiful!
Taos has a burrito wagon:)
Here is a pic of MY hotel room!!

I got some fun beads at Oodles, some looked like fish:)

2007-04-02T21:09:00.000-07:00

Here is a mall I have been wanting to go to outside of Santa Fe, called Festival.
And here is the necklace I got myself, handmade of Mexican silver. (70% off!!)
You can't see it in the photo, but the truck had IOWA plates:)
Here Im stuck behind a HOUSE!!

This is called Camel Rock!

2007-03-20T07:42:00.000-07:00

Here's a pic of the kids heading to the car this morning. This is our new "home", well, this half is our new "home". We share the house with two young male airmen, Im sure they are enjoying the noise of our ZOO! There are two parks within a block, so the kids are really enjoying more time outside.
Our first day in the house, Luke locked three of the doors and closed them behind him!! It took me two days to figure out how to unlock them:)

2007-03-20T07:38:00.000-07:00

I was driving down the road and this caught my attention, and I thought it was SO funny. I had to turn around in 5o'clock traffic to get this pic! Is it a sign that we need a baby and a dog?...

2007-03-12T11:34:00.000-07:00

Here are the girls with my dear friend Linda. She was the mayor of our town when I was growing up, and I had the honor of traveling to Russia with her when I was 17. The girls enjoyed soaking up attention from Linda and her husband, and they enjoyed the kids as well. Here she is wearing an Ethiopian scarf, the girls gave her as a gift.

2007-03-09T18:03:00.000-08:00

Look at ALL those pennies!!! The girls did a penny drive with their classes to raise pennies for the www.change4orphans.org organization. Their classes did great!!!
We just finished counting, and came up with $64.82 for a grand total! That means, the change collected from these three classes represents 6,482 of the over a million orphans in Ethiopia!

2007-03-08T10:19:00.000-08:00

This is Hannah's happy face:)

2007-03-01T18:51:00.000-08:00

I just wanted to share.
Maree came flying through the living room on one roller skate yelling "A slippery shoe!"
These girls are a trip!

2007-02-27T11:37:00.002-08:00

Journee had to write an autobiography for class about a month ago. Calvin helped her with it, and she enjoyed reading it for her class.
Last weekend, she decided to write her whole families autobiography. She has been working on it all weekend and yesterday. She writes a paragraph, then has me edit and correct it, then she records it into a journal. She is really proud of herself, and it is great therapy for her. She said when she is done, she wants Grandma to read it, she really loves my mom!
When they first got here, she used to pull Meya and Maree aside, and make them recite family history and get mad if they couldn't. She quit doing that when she saw it upset us. It is fine for them to talk about their family, but don't make Maree feel guilty or bad if she doesn't remember.
With this, she is involving us. She wants me to help her do it, and she is going to include us in it, at the end of course. She wants to write down what she remembers about her different family members and how much she loves them, how may wives and children they have etc.
Just thought Id share. She has figured out how therapeutic writing is, all on her own!

2007-02-26T17:24:00.000-08:00

After a crazy and heck tick weekend, the week started off with a bang! I talked to the girls classes today about Ethiopia. I decided to do a casual talk, and show the kids lots of cool stuff, that's what kids enjoy! I think their classes appreciated it, and had some interesting questions. One girl asked why our skin was different colors, and I explained that the girls are adopted. But what I wasn't expecting anyone to ask, was how the girls mom died. I don't know why I didn't expect it, but it threw me for a loop. I just said that they don't have doctors there like we have here, so when their mom was having a baby, she died. Journee got quiet, but tried to hide her sadness. She did great. After, I pulled her aside and said I was sorry it came up, and that she did great.
I am still struggling with the decision to switch churches. I found a church that is a mission outreach and church, it is in one of the poorest parts of Albuquerque. But, I dont want to decide out of emotions, we want to go where we should be.

2007-02-25T13:43:00.000-08:00

Journee and Meya got baptised today at church. The top picture is of them in their baptism dresses, the bottom two are of them actually in the tub of water. They did great! They have been looking forward to this day for a long time.

2007-02-19T22:31:00.000-08:00

God is Merciful!
For about a month now, we have been having Bible study and worship with the three older girls twice a week. Hannah and Luke are a little too young to obey for very long, so we do this after they are in bed for the evening.
This has been a great time of teaching, talking and praying. But also, it has been a great time of bonding. The girls spiritual life is SO very important to them, by us fostering it, they are drawing closer to us.
I (KT) have personally been feeling a bit dry with my walk for some time now. This past month has shown me just how dry I've gotten and has convicted me. It is so easy to grow complacent with life.
A couple from our church read the book "Always Enough" and thought of us, so they got us a copy of the book. It has truly been inspiring to read. It has also brought back my childhood desire to do mission work. Since I know right now isn't an ideal time for that, I am seeking God about what I can do.
I feel a strong desire to find an inner city church to start attending, to break away from the comfort of our Mega Church. Calvin agreed that I could go visit some and we would pray about what to do. Calvin has a gift in the pulpit, that he has currently put aside, but I'm sure God will only tolerate that for so long:) Surprisingly, I am really enjoying doing Bible studies with the girls, because I never saw myself teaching kids for some reason..... I also feel so free Praising with them. They have this innocence in their faith and dedication in their worship, I cant seem to get enough of it. Tonight, Calvin finally ended prayer at 9pm, since it is a school night, we all wanted to keep going.
Last week I began doing research about attachment disorder, as Maree is pretty unattached to us. She loves us and wants all of our attention, the problem is, she wants EVERYONES attention. She tries to go home with strangers and get strange men's attention at the park! From what I am reading, she doesn't seem to be severe, she is not violent and does not steal. But, none the less, we NEED to work on this now, so we don't have an unattached teenager! Tonight while worshiping, God told me to put my arm over her and pray, which I did, as we were both laying on the ground praying. Then He told me to pick her up and hold her like a baby and sing and pray. I did this, and she loved it. I feel impressed to do prayer every night this week, continuing to bond with Maree in this way. I know that with God, all things are possible, and I am believing this will be a healing week in our home. Please pray with us for this.
I remember reading in Adoption books that parents grieve the loss of their children's life prior to them coming into the family. I couldn't relate to this, I thought it sounded dramatic. It seemed like something a mother who never had bio kids would experience, but not me. I have had no such feelings until tonight. As I was holding Maree singing, I imagined in my mind, her as a three year old, wailing in the night for her mother. I felt so sad for what she went through, and I felt such a huge LOSS that I wasn't there for her and with her. I imagined every night she cried herself to sleep, confused why her warm mommy wasn't there holding her. Her mommy she had nursed from and slept with and been carried around on her back her whole life. I feel so sad for her, and so guilty it took three years for her to get a new mommy.

2007-02-19T09:05:00.000-08:00

Here are the girls in their Valentines dresses.

2007-02-15T21:17:00.000-08:00

2007-02-15T20:56:00.000-08:00

Today is a special day. Not only did the girls get to have their belated Valentines party at school, but it is also 6 months to the day since I got the girls at the Hilton in Ethiopia. The time has gone fast on one hand, but what a long journey it has been on the other! I remember longing for this day, wondering where we would be in the adoption, and hoping we would be past much of the pain and regret. I would say we are all doing pretty well!
I will post pics from the day at the girls school.

2007-02-14T14:27:00.000-08:00

Our third snowstorm of the year!! We got over 12 inches!
Journee writing a letter to her friend from the childrens home, and Meya reading a dictionary!

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!!

Last night the girls bathed, picked out clothes for the next day and had me paint their fingers and toes for their Valentines party at school. No one could be left out, so Luke also got clear polish on his toes!
Despite their excitement, we woke up to snow and cancelled school! After breakfast, I gave the kids their Valentines, which they loved!
A week ago we set a new rule, that Journee had to start doing her own homework, and we would check it. This has been going good. And today, on her own, Journee got a book out of her room and read it!! So, her first book she read on her own was Savanah's Birthday Party, from the American Girl collection. We are SO proud of her!!!

2007-02-12T06:54:00.000-08:00

Luke and Meya napping:)
Here is an example of how the girls dote on Luke when he pouts!! Pathetic!!

2007-02-12T06:36:00.000-08:00

Saturday I took the three older girls to see an IMAX movie called "Mystery of the Nile". It was about a group traveling down the entire Nile River, most of which goes through Ethiopia. It was a great film and good experience together. The girls could tell what a few people said, who were speaking in Amharic. There wasn't a lot of interaction with locals, it was more landscape, but they were all silent and still for the whole thing! They loved it and learning what they learned. At the end there was a song playing, and they said it was talking about, this is my country, this is my homeland. I would highly recommend this film!
Sunday the girls sand at the Methodist church where they go to an after school program on Wed. They enjoy being in a children's choir. I have them signed up for children choir and drama team at our church, but that isn't until Spring.
Please continue to pray, as some of Journee's teenage attitude is getting to me. I know I need to be more patient. I also know that it is teenage stuff. She is little miss know it all lately, and thinks she needs to correct everything I do. Like telling me that I'm driving the wrong way!! I need more patience!!!
We are working with Maree on her CONSTANT tattle telling! She recaps everything everyone does all day long. I know this is also age appropriate stuff for a 6 year old, and we are working with her, because it is SO annoying!
Over all, things are going well. The kids are pretty much gelled together like natural siblings, they love each other and fight a lot:)
V-Day is coming up, so we will be spending the day at their school on Wed, for class activities. They love when we show up for school stuff! And Journee doesn't care as long as Luke is there!! He is getting spoiled out of his mind by her!

2007-02-02T12:00:00.000-08:00

Journee got Student of the day for PE!
She has gotten student of the day in class several times,
so she was proud to get it in PE also. I keep them for her scrapbook, so she loves to bring them home to me:)

2007-02-02T11:44:00.000-08:00

Once again, our luck with NM contractors is HORRIBLE.
To add to our list of bad luck with the roof, deck, and now the stucco people that havent worked for two weeks! Im thinking I should just go to school for this stuff, since I will be the one stuck fixing it anyhow!
But I must say, Im pretty proud of myself!

Here is an example of my finished product!!!

Here is an "In progess" project....

Here is what the counter looked like after the guy tried to do it!! I could have screamed! Then, I had to tear it all out and I need to try to figure out why we NOW have a leak under our sink. I woud ask him to come fix it, but I dont want him touching my house again!!! URG!

2007-02-01T08:42:00.000-08:00

Some of you may know that we are working on turning our mountain home into a resort, where it will be rented nightly or weekly.
Here are some pics of the progress we have made:)
I know I havent posted for a while, we have been busy on other things:)

View from bottom deck as sun is starting to set!

Things to do while you're here...

Snow, misty view...

Dining room.

Antique bedroom.

Retro room.

Master jetted tub!

2007-02-01T08:07:00.000-08:00

My precious baby snoozing:0)
In all the chaos of this house, he
has learned to crash when he
is tired!!

2007-02-01T08:03:00.000-08:00

Meya's hairstyle that took an hour and a half! I need to get faster at this!

2007-01-11T06:54:00.000-08:00

This morning......

We got the kids up, and got breakfast served. They were complaining about getting up early. It was only 15 minutes earlier then normal, so I didn’t see the big deal. I explained that they have to get up at this time, so dad isn’t late for work dropping them off.

So, after everyone ate, Journee was writing notes. She does this a lot, so I didn’t think much of it. Then, she handed them out. She gave one to me, one to Calvin and one to Meya. They said "Please pray for happy 13 old. Thank you". So, I asked if she was feeling sad, and she said yes. Then, Calvin walked in and asked about 10 questions, and made things more clear. She was feeling sad and wanted us to pray for her, then her eyes teared up.

So, the three of us went into her room and prayed for her for a while. She ended up saying that she had a bad dream that her dad died and she didn’t kiss him good-bye. And then her whole family died.

She is having a hard time, and was SO brave to ask for help.

2007-01-10T08:10:00.000-08:00

The kids at the park the day after Christmas with some of their cousins. Look, no snow!!

2007-01-10T07:52:00.000-08:00

Recap on the Holidays!
We went to Iowa for almost two weeks to visit my side of the family. We all had a great time, and the kids enjoyed eating all day, playing all day, and not having a bedtime!! They now think Heaven is like Iowa! After almost two weeks, the kids were ready to come home, kids really do feel safer with structure.
I was able to see many friends and family I hadn’t seen in a while, and they all enjoyed meeting the girls.
The girls had a great time bonding with their cousins, and getting spoiled! They got several great gifts, but the time with family was definitely the highlight of the trip. Journee really enjoyed her time with Grandma Mary. They burnt CD's, printed pictures, and sang together. Meya was addicted to the movie "High School Musical"! Maree spent the whole trip either following my parents dog Molly around, or listening to the musical clock in their bedroom. Hannah ate and ate, and tormented Molly. And Luke took a few naps, and tormented Molly and his boy cousins! This guy needs another boy around!!
My nephew Jonas was there, and he is about Lukes size, but a little younger. My goodness were those two battling over territory, and a big toy car! Luke won most of them, but in a year or two, Jonas will show him who's boss! That boy has an incredible arm! And looks like a GAP baby!
When we headed back from Iowa, we had big plans of driving to OK City to stay the night, but in Kansas, our transmission went out. So we got loaded onto a big tow truck, and had to sit in our vehicle, since there were SO many of us. The kids thought we were flying! We got into a hotel, got a good nights rest. The next day, Meya was in the ER with Staff infection in her nose. We got meds, came back to the hotel, and packed in time for Calvin to get back with the truck up and running!
We left Iowa, with maybe 2 inches of snow on the ground, and returned to New Mexico with at least 2 feet!! What a crazy winter!!
We are Blessed, and are looking forward to the wonderful year ahead!

2007-01-08T13:07:00.000-08:00

The kids opening their Christmas gifts.

2007-01-08T13:02:00.000-08:00

We got about two feet of snow here in NM before leaving for Iowa for Christmas!
After a little fell, Calvin took Hannah and Maree out to make their first snowman!

2006-12-18T08:36:00.000-08:00

2006-12-18T08:16:00.000-08:00

Here's the kids Christmas pic! Can you tell by looking at Meya that it was a little chilly:)

2006-12-17T20:24:00.000-08:00

I went to a hair supply store, and got the girls the correct type of shampoo and conditioner. We then came home and did a deep conditioner, and style.
This is my first attempt at doing twists. Im not ready to try braids yet.........

2006-12-15T07:55:00.000-08:00

Here is the website where the girls article is.
http://www.mvtelegraph.com/

2006-12-09T13:20:00.000-08:00

Hello friends and family! The interview with the reporter went great! The girls did very good. They are very anxious to see the article in this Thursdays paper, and asked that I get a copy for their teachers. I dont know how indepth the article will be, he asked a lot of questions.
There has been a lot of interest by our blog viewers to order bracelets, so I wanted to let you all know how we decided it will work.
You can ask questions or submit orders to ktlynn99@comcast.net
Shipping will be free, and if ordered via the computer, they will be reduced to $5 each.
Special requests are welcomed. All bracelets will be in a clear package with a thank you note.
When ordering, include these things.
1. How many
2. What sizes ex. child, adult, XL
3. Mailing address.
4. Any special requests.
Thanks for all your support and prayers!
KT

2006-12-07T18:50:00.000-08:00

Here are Journee and Meya working on bracelets!

Here are some examples of the stuff they are making. Every one is different and a one of a kind! Most of the beads are glass.

The local paper wants to do a story on the girls making bracelets! We hope this will be a great experience for the girls, as well as boost the sales! Tomorrow at 4pm the reporter is coming, pray all goes well. Also, we found two small shops in town that are selling the bracelets!

2006-12-06T19:49:00.000-08:00

WWW.HEIFER.ORG

The girls are working diligently at making 100 bracelets to sell to buy a cow for an African family. A cow costs about $500, so they are selling the bracelets for $6 each. A dear and wonderful friend of mine has agreed to put them in her hair salon and her consignment shop! This will be great!

When I brought up the idea, the girls were a little sad the cow wasn’t for their family, but once I explained, they were overjoyed to take on this project.
It has provided great bonding time for the girls and I. When they get too silly, I have to remind them that no one will get a cow if we don’t get busy!

Keep this project in your prayers, and let us know if you need any Christmas gifts, we have a perfect ideaJ Free shipping!

2006-12-05T11:31:00.000-08:00

Maree post op from her hernia surgery.
Poor baby:(
She is doing great though.

2006-12-02T14:17:00.000-08:00

Today we attended an Adoption Party, and had a blast. There were games, cookie decorating, a playground, and balloons. What more could a kid want?!

Here are Journee and Hannah decorating Cookies. I made the sugar cookies, 11 dozen of them! Journee couldn't wait to eat "Moms" cookies:)
Hannah dumped a whole container of sprinkles on ONE cookie!

Here is Luke, he liked the M&M's more then my cookies:(

Meya and Luke driving a boat to Old McDonalds, their favorite place to eat!
I tried to explain the difference between McDonalds and Old McDonald, but it was useless..................

Meya and Journee love doing gymnastics, they say "I like sport".

The girls spinning and spinning!! No one got sick, thank goodness.

Half a family picture:)

2006-11-29T08:34:00.000-08:00

Meya's goofy side............

Journee's serious side..............

2006-11-25T21:29:00.000-08:00

We took the kids to see a Christmas light display.
The kids LOVED it!!

2006-11-24T10:28:00.000-08:00

Hannah showing off her new spunky hair do!

2006-11-19T18:44:00.000-08:00

This past week was half days for the kids, so we had some extra bonding time. The week went well, and everyone behaved, for the most partJ

Meya had a few tough days, but that is totally understandable.

On Friday, Calvin took the little kids out for some bonding, and I spent the day with the older girls. They ended up sharing with me, details of the day their mother passed away. They get SO much comfort in her faith. She sounds incredible! I look forward to meeting her one day, in our life beyond this one.

The two older girls have shown great interest in learning how to cook, and how to run the washing machine. I also look forward to teaching them these things. I told Journee she can help me with the Thanksgiving meal.

2006-11-19T18:12:00.000-08:00

The little ones helping me bake. I decided to make use of the pumpkin that escaped being turned into a Jack-o-lantern, so we made:
Pumpkin Muffins with orange cream icing.
They turned out SO good!!!

2006-11-15T17:51:00.000-08:00

After three months of Maree using anything she could get her hands on for hair, I found her a wig on a clearance Halloween rack. A good $2 investment. The only problem so far has been that I wouldnt let her wear it to school.

2006-11-14T07:57:00.000-08:00

Our local Zoo just added a great play area, so we spent some time here on Saturday. The kids had a blast, and here is a pic of everyone refueling!

2006-11-14T07:26:00.000-08:00

The past week has been frustrating, exciting and fulfilling.

Monday thru Thursday of last week, the girls were all acting a little withdrawn. Maree began hiding in the end table, and the other two were just not themselves. The anger surrounding our adoption crept back in, and I was struggling with that. So, I asked some wonderful women on an adoption board to give me a kick in the butt, to get past my anger. They were great, and on Thursday I wrote Journee a “Love” letter. When the girls got home from school, they were homesick and on the verge of tears. They didn’t talk to me in the car, like they usually do. So, when we arrived home, I took Journee in her room and had her read the letter I had written her, out loud. It was just she and I, and she struggled thru it, but did it. Then, I asked her if I could hug her, she complied. In our moment of tenderness, she began to cry. Not the out of control meltdown she usually breaks into. But a sad soft cry. I held her for several minutes, then Luke came in, and she bear hugged him. She remained in her room for a few hours, until Calvin came home. I checked on her several times. She was crying and grieving, quietly, and writing scriptures in Amharic. When she was ready to come out, she was refreshed and secure. She is a great girl. We still don’t know why God allowed all this to happen, but I am thankful that I get to be her second mother.

Maree has done SO well, just blending in and getting lost in the mix. She got sick of that this past week and began hiding in obvious places for attention. Last night, I spent the whole night focused on her. Gave her a massage, and held her all night. She wanted me to carry her around the house like a baby, so that is what we did! I wish I had an extra 8 hours in each day to give EVERYONE the attention they deserve.

Meya has truly been a dream adopted child. She is a middle child people pleaser. She watches the little kids, and helps them out. She does her chores without being asked, and is very smart. Okay, and cute as can be! Last night, out of the blue, she refused to do her math work. Calvin told her if she wouldn’t do it, she would have to write. She still refused, so he took her to her room to write. I went to check on her after a little while and found her being an over achiever and writing much more then she was supposed to. I told her she could stop, and tried some art therapy to see what was going on inside of her. That didn’t work, she didn’t want to communicate. So I asked her questions, and it came out that she was homesick and missed her family and church very much. I held her for a long time and cried a little. She is such a GREAT kid! She has done so well getting shuffled in the mix, and pretending to be perfect. Calvin then took a little time with her, and she seemed to be feeling better by bed time.

Sadly, while she was in her room, she got her first phone call! A friend of hers from school called. It was SO cute! I need to see if I can copy it off our voice mail. I let Meya listen to the message this morning, and will let her call her friend back tonight.

We are so happy they are making friends at school. This is doing a lot for their self esteem.

On Monday, the girls danced and sang songs that are native to Ethiopia for their classes. I guess the students and teachers LOVED it! Journee said that she spent recess teaching her friends the songs and dances.

Hannah feel asleep way too early last night, so at about 9 pm, she thought it was time to get up from her nap! I hadn’t had much time with her during the evening, so I decided to sleep in her bed, something I never do. We don’t family bed with our kids, because we make pillow talk a priority. Well, with five kids, you have to give everyone what you can. So, she and I cuddled last night, and it was great. At 4 am, she wanted to start the day, so we came out to the couch to get back to sleep. She is my love, there is just something special about a first born.

2006-11-06T07:38:00.000-08:00

This past week turned out to be a pretty big week in our house. By chance, or God, we realized that a cousin of our girls is coming to the states also, so they have been VERY excited all week. I asked them a few questions about the other girl, and it opened up a WORLD of information for us. We have learned more about them this past week then all previous info combined. The stories have included a variety of information. Including their fathers tribe, and how they would go visit family on that side and have big celebrations with them. They finally have opened up about their mother through this. Prior to this, they said they didnt remember her. On Wednesday they were telling me about her, and how loving she was. How they would run home from school, and she would be waiting by the door to hug them and pray with them. And that she was a good cook. They told me about the day she died. Journee said that everyone was crying to God and asking why. But she just went out side, that she didnt cry and has never cried for her mother, and that she isnt sure why. She said that their father cried to God and asked Him to not send another wife, that their father doesnt want to marry again.
I am greatful that they feel safe enough to share these stories with me. I want to talk to them again about her, to write down all that they say, so they will have it some day if their memory looses track of some of the details.
Journee is also showing more attitude. She is starting to make little attitude filled remarks, back talking basically. We have decided to get on her about it. She needs to learn to balance joking and being rude. She is also growing a desire to be in charge, so we need to get her back in her place. She doesnt need to tell us what to do, or how to raise the other kids. Up to this point I had laughed at her and told her that I didnt need her help. But, I think we need to get a little firmer.
Meya is still doing great. She is very much the middle child personality. She is a people pleaser, and very helpful and charming.
Maree is doing better then last week. I think last week she was feeling left out, and has had a hard time handing over her role as the youngest child. This week went better.

2006-10-30T12:38:00.000-08:00

I Sewed the girls matching skirts, so I HAD to get a picture of them!

2006-10-27T22:40:00.000-07:00

Its been awhile since I’ve written on how the family is doing. So I will catch you all up. We have been SO busy!! Five kids will keep you on your toes all day, and passed out cold at night! Each evening is filled with school work, chores, and showers, then its bed time. School is still going pretty well. We asked to move Meya to the third grade, but the principal wants to keep her where she is. Journee is doing well in fourth grade, she isn’t socially ready to move up yet. I’m sure there is some home schooling in our future. Maree is doing well and speaking in full sentences when she chooses to, other wise she pretends she is muteJ She has been grieving for a few weeks, her teacher even said she has been a little different at school. We are trying to make a little more time for her. It is easy for her to get lost in the mix of things.

Since the girls got home, they have seen Halloween stuff at Wal-Mart, and it has been talked about at school. So, I decided to dress them up in their choir robes and take them to a business sponsored trick-or-treating. It wasn’t what I expected. It was more like a haunted house. I thought about us just leaving once we got inside, but the kids wanted the candy. I’m sure they were pretty freaked out at first and I kept telling them it wasn’t real. I wouldn’t do that again. I didn’t expect it to be like that. Our church is having something Tuesday night, where no scary costumes are allowed. This will be better, and we will only do that next year. By the time we got through the whole thing and each child had a good two pounds of candy, they seemed to have warmed up to it.

I’m sure they are very confused. They were raised in a great Christian home, where their father ran two Bible studies a week that the kids attended. Journee has proven she knows a lot about the Bible. Calvin asked them what color Jesus was, and Journee said like Hannah’s color, but not black. (Jesus is believed to have been middle eastern). Also, Calvin asked if they thought he was going to Heaven, and Journee said only God knows, she can not say.

The one time Calvin scared them to be silly they were up praying for two hours. I can only imagine what they are thinking now. I really hope they don’t have bad dreams. I will pray over them and not take them to another place like that again. That is all I can do. I think seeing their friends from school there helped them to realize it is just for fun.

That’s about all on the Bradshaw front.

2006-10-27T22:18:00.000-07:00

Here are 5 of our 7 member choir. Our church has a costume contest on Tuesday, so we are a church choir!

2006-10-20T15:22:00.000-07:00

Yeah, that's a lot of candles! Calvin turned 30 today! We found something new that all three girls like, Chocolate Cake!!
Calvin also got to go to the girls school today for "Take your Father to Lunch" day. The girls all enjoyed having him there, and he enjoyed going.

2006-10-19T12:02:00.000-07:00

Luke has carried my tripod around the house the last few days saying "mile, pitcher!"
This makes Mommy smile:)

2006-10-17T09:48:00.000-07:00

2006-10-17T08:22:00.000-07:00

Last night........
I have to share what happened last night with you all. It was 7:30, which is bed time in our house. Journee and Meya said they wanted to show us something. We all gathered in the room where the four younger kids sleep, and Meya stepped forward to go first. She had a piece of paper in her hands and she read:

Name, Meya Bradshaw October 16, 2006

I like Journee. I love you.

I like Maree. I love you.

I like Hannah. I love you.

I like Luke. I love you.

I like daddy. I love you.

I like mommy. I love you.

I like my family. I love you.

Then Journee took the stage and read:

Name, Journee October 16, 2006

Family

My family are nice and good.

My dad are nice and good.

My mom are good and nice.

My brother are good and nice.

My sisters are good and nice.

I like my daddy. I love you.

I like my mommy. I love you.

I like my brother. I love you.

I like my sisters. I love you.

Luke

Hannah

Journee

Maree

Meya

Daddy

Mommy

This is my family.

I love my family.

Yeah, so I almost cried, I think the only thing that stopped me was that I was tired. We hugged them and told them we love them too. And the hugs since last night, have been deeper stronger hugs.

God is doing a great thing in their hearts, because they have sure had a lot to process!

2006-10-16T09:58:00.000-07:00

2006-10-14T20:24:00.000-07:00

I got home from running some errands and had a strong urge to do some photos. So I made everyone throw on a white shirt, before we lost all sun light and ran outside. Below you will see a few different versions of the same pic. Now that I got that out of my system, I will move onto the next idea on my list:)

2006-10-14T20:23:00.000-07:00

I love photoshop!

2006-10-14T20:20:00.000-07:00

Another version....

2006-10-14T17:30:00.000-07:00

New family pic.

2006-10-13T08:27:00.000-07:00

2006 Balloon Fiesta, balloon glow.

2006-10-13T07:28:00.000-07:00

This morning was unusually hectic, because our neighbor came to help Calvin move our camper to storage. This meant all the kids ate at a snails pace and watched in awe saying "No, he's my daddy". By the time I hustled the kids out the door, Hannah and Luke were still in pj’s with bed head. But all were bundled in winter gear, teeth were brush, and no one was fighting. As I watched them trail out the door, one by one, plump as marshmallows, I couldn’t stop smiling. We are blessed, God has given us five healthy beautiful children.

I am blessed to get to experience the biological bond I have with Hannah and Luke, they are my heart! The more time that passes, the more I feel these girls belong in our family. I feel so torn right now, because there were times early on where we felt they should go home to be with their family, as there is no logical reason they are here. But now, as we draw closer and closer to these girls, I can’t imagine them going back. To even think of it, breaks my heart, it really brings tears to my eyes. Even with the many challenges Journee brings to our family, I want her here. (This emotion is subject to change when the pouting beginsJ)

I enjoy packing everyone up in the morning, and hauling them off to school (where everyone needs to hug and kiss three times, then blow 5 kisses back and forth before getting in the school). I enjoy picking them up, with shouts of excitement back and forth as the kids come into each others view. One special days they have a variety of goodies they collected through out the day (like half a piece of gum, or a jolly rancher, or 10 goldfish crackers), which they divide up with the other kids. It is a sight to see.

Last night I took Meya and Journee to the balloon glow at the Balloon Fiesta with the kids babysitter and her mom, it was a hoot! They enjoyed the balloons, and wanted to take a picture of each one 40 times. We all tried some mini cinnamon rolls and cotton candy, the cotton candy was odd to them, and a little bit was enough. But then……….the fireworks started. They went crazy!! Meya screamed through the whole thing! Journee went nuts every time we tried to talk, for fear that someone would miss something! They said 20 times, “not in Ethiopia”. This means we have finally found something they haven’t seen before.

There was music, and the girls danced, ran acted silly and had a blast! We will go back on Saturday morning with Hannah and Maree also, so they can see the balloons actually take off.

2006-10-07T05:46:00.000-07:00

The "after" pic of the pumpkins. This whole pumpkin thing must be confusing to the girls. I can imagine them thinking "why are we coloring on gords?" And yes, Maree IS also holding a doll head........

2006-10-07T05:16:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Calvin took off work and we put the little ones in daycare, so we could have a day together. I have been frustrated and over stressed for several days, and I blew up at him. I feel the girls have pulled away from me, and I feel like it is partly because Calvin is the fun parent. All I do is cook and yell. Even though I didnt need to take my frustrations out on him, I think I needed to get them out. I dont want to be bad cop, it isnt fun. So we will both work on letting each other be good cop.
Also, Journee is keeping Meya so far from us, I feel I have no relationship with her. Journee creates this wall between Meya and anyone else. They cant breath without each other. We will continue to work at keeping them apart as much as possible. We are planning to get Journee into an after school program.
So about yesterday...... I took Meya with me to pick up Hannah and Luke from daycare. Then we ate at McDonalds and the kids played for an hour. We ran a few more errands and went home. Calvin was then on his way out the door with Journee to go to a football game. I spent the whole evening feeling sorry, that she is proubably bored and cold. They got home, and she LOVED it! Ok, how did I end up with a daughter that loves football????
While they were gone, the four younger ones and I decorted little pumpkins and ate popcorn. I tucked the three youngest into bed at 7:30, and Meya had her first photo shoot. It was lots of fun, but I wasnt feeling real inspired. I think we will do more outside, maybe that will go better. Meya is so girly and cute, we had a great time.
When we were done, I pulled up photoshop and was showing her some different things we can do, then I let her do some things. She put stars all over her face in one. She thought it was pretty fun, but I think she would have rather been at a football game:(

2006-10-06T20:19:00.000-07:00

Here is a pic of Meya from our first photo op. My studio is pretty ghetto, but it works. I thought she would be a little concerned when we went in the room, but it seems the girls have already been waiting for their turn! She was ready to pose and was going through the props.
This will be great to have three new kiddos to practice my photography on:)

2006-10-05T13:14:00.000-07:00

2006-10-05T13:06:00.000-07:00

Hannah's first real hair cut! I cut off about 8 inches. It looks pretty cute now. I got sick of fighting her for 45 minutes trying to comb and braid her hair. Little girls with sensitive heads should have short hair! Plus, now that her hair isnt braided, she says she is a barbie.

2006-10-05T13:04:00.000-07:00

Hannah's first deep conditioner! She left the cap on her head for 30 minutes to earn her promised sucker when it was all over:)

2006-10-02T09:30:00.000-07:00

Meya & Maree:)

2006-10-01T22:28:00.000-07:00

Our little cubs in their PJ's! Footy pajamas are the best!

2006-10-01T21:38:00.000-07:00

We had two good weeks. But now we have had a few tough days. The pouting gets SO annoying! I get SO frustrated, and think I may be withdrawing from the girls a little. I am going to make a concious effort not to. Please pray for us in this area. We are also trying to decide if we should seperate the two oldest girls. We know the middle girl feels torn, and get reminded all night long about how horrible we are. But at the same time, they have never even slept in different beds. Journee had another melt down today. Crying, wailing, and throwing herself against her door. She calmed down a little and told me that she didnt understand why she had to write "Pouting is not accepted" 100 times. I told her that Mom and Dad dont spank her, this is here discipline. She then told me in Ethiopia, there is no discipline. Im quite sure this is NOT true. I think there are a lot of abused kids there actually.
Saturday I had the girls help me put together stockings for Metro Ministries and shoe boxes for Samaritans Purse. They pouted because they couldnt figure out why I was sending all this stuff to other people. I explained the people were poor, but they still asked for each thing I put in a box or stocking. Then Journee broke the stapler, two days before she broke the shower. I wonder when they will ever stop breaking stuff. I will include the links to the above organizations, incase you are looking for something charitable to do.
The man who runs Metro Ministries is AMAZING!! His name is Bill Wilson, and he has the heart of a true Christian. In fact, I wrote him a letter when we were going through some crap prior to our adoption, and he acutally called me! Like he doesnt have a million other things going on! His books and videos will be worth every penny. If you can ever see him speak, go and take kleenex!
Please keep us in your prayers.
www.metroministries.com
www.samaritanspurse.com

2006-10-01T13:55:00.000-07:00

I think I will use this for Maree's school picture, I just can't pay for those odd pose school pic's. Plus, they cost more then if I do them myself, and you all know how cheap I am:)

2006-10-01T13:53:00.000-07:00

Hannah and her baby gave it a try too!!!

2006-10-01T13:50:00.000-07:00

This is how the women in Ethiopia carry their children around. It looked odd at first, then I asked if it was comfortable, and was told YES!
Luke is very attached lately, so I gave it a try, it is SO comfortable! He asks for mama's back now.
This is much more comfortable then the odd strappy things we sell here in the US. Luke is over two and this was still comfy! All you need is a bed sheet:)

2006-10-01T13:48:00.000-07:00

I wanted a nice picture of me and all my kiddos. The picture turned out nice, but you will notice one is missing. She is on the other couch pouting, again!

2006-10-01T13:45:00.000-07:00

I got my beading stuff out and the girls made braclets for their friends at school. These are the moments I dreamed of.
Of couse this was followed by pouting.......

2006-09-28T11:26:00.000-07:00

Today is Sept. 28th. Yesterday was Calvin and my 4th wedding anniversary. I was thinking today: For our one year anniversary, we were home with our 2 month old Hannah Grace. For our two year anniversary, we were home with 1 year old Hannah and 1 month old Luke. Then, for our three year anniversary, we enjoyed the fact that we hadn't just brought home a baby. And this anniversary we spent supervising Hannah (now 3), Luke (now 2) and Maree (5) in one room, while the other was in another room doing homework with Journee and Meya...... Wow, how things have changed so much. How blessed we have been in just four short years!
I also want to say that I am so blessed to have such an amazing husband to share my life with! He has exceeded my wildest dreams. He is such an involved father. When he comes home from work, the girls anticipate when he will come to their room to do homework and spend time together. Whenever I need a break, he tells me to just go (All by myself!!!). Thank you Calvin, for being sure a great husband, father and friend. I love you!

2006-09-23T08:21:00.000-07:00

The girls are working hard to personalize their walls! They love thumb tacks:) They almost get as excited when I provide more tacks as they were about their bikes (prior to the accident).
When they first arrived, they didnt understand how to color or why to color, they are doing great now. They draw lots of pictures and figured out how to trace. They also do good mixing crayons and markers.

2006-09-23T08:01:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Meya stayed home from school, to rest after her great fall. So we spent the day around the house, and played a few games of memory. Calvin came home from work early, and we ate as a family. Then I packed up Hannah to go get her stitches removed, and took Journee along. Calvin gathered the other three and headed to a soccer game.
The stitch removal went well. She was excited about her sucker after words. It was good for Journee to see what was going on, because we are really working with the girls on slowing down and not pushing. It was a good bonding time for Journee and Hannah also, there have been some jealousy issues on both sides since the girls came home. We ran errands, and got ice cream at McDonalds. Journee ate ice cream for the first time, but not too much:) Without her sister by her side, she is willing to try new things.
It was a good time of bonding, no one had any fits:) YEAH!!!!
On the way home, Journee communicated to me a big plan she has come up with. By her calculations, we could easily fit 7 more kids in the upstairs of our house. Four more in the double bed in their room, all girls of course. She said Maree and Hannah could share one bed, then two more girls could fit on the other, and Luke can fit one more boy in his bed. I was laughing so hard! She has put a lot of thought into this. She said three will come next year, when she is in 5th grade, then two more in 6th grade, and the last two in 7th grade. She said Calvin should travel next time to get the kids. Then, when everyone is grown up, all the kids will pay to move everyone back to Ethiopia! Im not sure what her total will be once she discovers we have two hide-a-beds and an air mattess, not to mention two more rooms downstairs!
So...... If it is SO terrible to live here, why should be bring 7 more kids into the house?? To me, this was her way of saying, "I like it here, and I think other kids would too." It was a very nice time with her. She acted more grown up, and not so selfish. I told her I agreed, but she needs to convince Daddy.
I am reading and VERY much enjoying the book "Theres no me without you" by Mellisa Faye Greene. Anyone with a compassionate heart, or who enjoys true stories, should read this. It is SO good. I have cried only twice. It is taking me through a lot of emotions. One, because it paints a picture of Africa that I used to think was real. But, after our adoption, the africa in my mind has changed. My africa is now, not so poor. Then I get angry, angry that these arent the kids we adopted. Then I feel that our girls future children would have been those kids, even though our girls werent. It is all very confusing and overwhelming. I am really enjoying learning more about HIV/AIDS from the book. Wow, our society is really scared for lack of knowledge. It makes me want to adopt 15 AIDS orphans, to provide what American has and Africa doesnt. Really, read this book if you arent already!

2006-09-23T07:52:00.000-07:00

Despite my many warnings, the girls thought they would run their bikes up the road (we live in the mountains), and ride back down at 25 mph. Meya didnt factor in the curb, and hit the guard rail. Thank God there was a guard rail! I saw the whole thing happen and I will say it is a miracle that this is all that she is suffering from. I felt sick all night. The people in the ER know our family now, we are considering putting all the kids in padded suits and not allowing them out of the house.

2006-09-23T07:38:00.000-07:00

Hannah's first stitches, 12 of them!
The girls are So pushy, Hannah got shoved into the fireplace! We are working on patience.

2006-09-20T07:21:00.000-07:00

Our Meeting............
The meeting went pretty well. There were tears of homesickness more then anything else. Meya is very homesick and sad.
The girls were able to tell us the baby also died when their mother died, we have been wondering about this for a while. We feel this is the truth, it was emotional for them. We were able to tell them we are sorry this happened to them and their family.
They got very upset over the age issue. We told them their ages, according to the doctor. Journee insisted this can not be correct, because they were born in a hospital, and their father took their birth records to the agency. This makes us wonder if then the agency changed it or if the hospital made some up for him. It is not possible that Journee is just turning 9. They did not seem interested in trying to catch up with their peers, so I guess she will stay 9:)
They have an attitude that the military is not a good job. Of course, no jobs are good to them except doctors and professors. We had a chance to explain that America is at war and that Americans support our troops. I explained that I was proud of my time in the AF and that I am proud to be an AF wife.
They were able to explain that the reason they thought they were going back to visit in 8th grade is because a man from the agency told them this, with their father present. I guess this is his way of getting the children to leave their parents. They said when they were moved to the orphanage in Addis, they were told they were going to school there. Some of these things may just be children telling themselves what they want to believe. I am not slandering the agency, I am sharing their perspective.
There were moments of attitude, like when Journee thought she was smarter then our friend and tried to quiz him with 15x10. This man has a PHD in some molecular something that I will never even be able to pronounce. He just laughed at her and went on. And when she blatantly ignored some of his questions. Or when she (with lots of teenage attitude) was asking what age to tell people, making a big cynical scene. It is amazing how much we can pick up on, just watching her.

2006-09-19T07:36:00.000-07:00

I want to start off by thanking everyone who blessed us with gift cards, as part of our adoption shower. You are truly a blessing, this has helped SO much.
We have had a few rocky days and a few good ones this past week. Friday night Calvin went to a movie, so no one got thrown from the roof of our house, (we have to give each other breaks) and I was home with the kids. One conversation led to another and soon enough they were on the subject of going to Ethiopia to visit. I explained how much they will have to work to buy just one ticket. I told Journee to get on her bike and go find a job. She was DEVISTATED that I would not get a job to pay for it. She also thinks the only jobs of value are Doctors and professors. In Ethiopia the military is where all the misfits go, so they have NO respect for what Calvin does. Tonight we are going to visit our Ethiopian friends, and this will be part of the discussion. They will be told how the military is respected here and how you have to work hard to be in the military.
After the Ethiopia discussion, we started talking about jobs and how I used to be in the military. I got out my photos of my time in Kuwait, and then my photo album of growing up. It was really good bonding. I look forward to when their English has improved and we can talk about real issues, and share our pasts with them.
We are trying to decide if it is time to make the rule that only English is to be spoken out side of their room. We know they talk about us and our country in their language, right in our faces. We are getting really tired of it.
Meya's doctor appointment went well. Maree has some minor hearing loss, we will follow up on this. We are still waiting on blood work and stool results.
Im sure we will have more to say after our meeting tonight, I expect it to be eventful.

2006-09-18T18:06:00.000-07:00

Could he be any cuter?
He does look like his mom:)

2006-09-18T17:59:00.000-07:00

My handsome baby boy!!

2006-09-17T10:54:00.000-07:00

A day at the Zoo.

2006-09-17T10:42:00.000-07:00

Little sisters and best friends!

2006-09-17T10:37:00.000-07:00

Hannah and Maree are two peas in a pod.
And great little mommies too!!

2006-09-17T10:30:00.000-07:00

It's a Dad thing.......................

2006-09-09T18:51:00.000-07:00

Wow has this last week been busy. Three weeks home!
We have had success with avoiding some of the meltdowns, it has been a week since the last one. This makes the attaching process a little smoother, because being on edge of triggering a meltdown almost causes you to stay at a distance. We had Journee's first full doctor appt, and it went well. She was VERY nervous at first, but I assured her the Dr. is nice and a woman, so that helped a lot. The Dr. said Journee has a small gotter in her thyroid, but will be easy to treat if it doenst go away on its own. She said her extimate would be that she is about 12, according to US standards. It would sure be great to get her caught up to her peer group, but right now she is still acting about 7. I know the adoption has been tramatic for them. We started having her go in with the mid-schoolers at church, so she can start learning to assimulate into our culture, with her approprite age group.
Meya is getting more challanging over time. She wants very badly to be like her sister. We are pretty sure they get together to decide what areas to misbehave in:) At first she was very laid back, but is now basically acting just like Journee. This is frustrating, but she will learn eventually that they will not win. This morning she felt it important to be disrespectful to Calvin, so she wrote 100 times, "I will tell Dad good morning". She did it too! I bet tomorrow we wont have that problem again. In Ethiopia, kids are beaten for bad behavior, so when these kids come to the US, they think our parenting is a joke. We decided rather then to get all worked up, we will make their discipline educational. They will count or write things, ect as punishment, over and over and over again. They may still think we are lax, but it will help with their schooling.
Maree is doing well. She is actually very age appropriate. She pouted today because I wouldnt buy her some shoes. I told her she already has some, so she whined all the way to the car, like any 6 year old. We moved the bunk beds and Hannah and Maree are sharing them, and Luke is in their room also. This way the older girls have their own room, and wont have all night long to talk about how horrible America is in front of Maree. She is a little giggle bug!
The two older girls are grieving the loss of their country in may ways. One way is that they are sure Ethiopia was SO wonderful. Anything we do was better in Ethiopia. Anything I show them, they had in Ethiopia. It feels very frustrating from our end, because we have given so much to bring them here, and we feel non of it is appriciated. We have to remember they are grieving and very sad.
We had a hard reality hit us this week. While spending time with our Ethiopian friends, the girls asked when they will go visit their family. They said their father told them this was basically an education program, and that after college they will come back and support the family. This is something we had suspected, but hearing it broke our hearts and shattered our hopes. We were devisted. After a few days, I really began to gain comfort from God that He will help us through this. He put on my heart that we can make this good or bad. If we raise them angry at their bio father, they will resent us. But, if we raise them open to the idea of returning to Ethiopia, then we can use that as an avenue to train them to be missionarys. This way, they will go back (if they choose to) to do Gods work, not their bio fathers plans. I can not understand why a father would put such a huge burden on a child to carry, but shame on him. We will never have the answers, but it is our responsiblity to raise these girls to love the Lord and do His work. I dont know if I feel this was Gods will, but I do know He allowed it to happen. God never gives you more then you can hadle, and He uses all kinds of situations to get the glory from.
Now that we know why they think they are here, we are using it for our advantage. For some reason they DO NOT like to bathe. So the new rule is, No shower, No school. We havent had any problems with showering since!!!
About every other night before bed, we all play hide and seek as a family. It is great bonding and tons of fun! We all enjoy it!
Last night Calvin snuck in their room to scare them, just playing around. They saw him on the top bunk and got freaked out and thought he was a ghost. One thing led to another and they got pretty worked up. They had an all out singing, praying, chanting, crying church service in their room. We listened from their door to not disturb them. These are some little Christian worriers, they certainly werent sent here for salvation, Im thinking they could actually get us back on track. They are so serious about their faith and have such incredible relationships with God for such small kids. I am humbled by their faith!
Thanks again for all the prayers going up for us, I know by faith, that God will use this situation for a purpose SO much bigger then we realize.
I would say that over this past week, I have gained an appriciation for my own parents on a level I didnt before. I have great parents and have always felt that way, but this process is making we realize the depth of their greatness as parents! Thanks Mom and Dad!!