One Thousand Gifts...Big Blessings Today

Our church is going through the book of Luke, verse by verse. We are in Luke 10 right now. So a few of my thank yous are based on the teaching I heard this morning.

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194. I rejoice that my name is written in Heaven...Lord forgive me for not always being mindful that this is miraculous!

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195. I am thankful that God is sovereign over everything. No trial or pain can come to me that is not under His control...and He loves me. This is so comforting!

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196. I am thankful that His name is going out all over the world and people are coming to Him in places that used to be untouched by the gospel. There are more Christians in China now than there are people in England. I pray for those Christians often...that they will somehow reach Betsie's birth family and some of the people who helped us adopt her.

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197. Tonight we are having dinner with some old friend, Bryan and Michele and their boys. I am thankful for this! We have only seen them once or twice in over four years because we live in different cities now. But there was a time when we saw them a few times a week. They were the kind of friends that you called on Friday night and said, "What are we doing tonight?" We never had to call and say, "Would you like to get together?" It was understood. And we had a regular Christmas tradition too, complete with gifts and a nice meal. They were a reference for us when we adopted. Bryan and Jason held each other accountable for many years. We prayed for each other as we moved from apartments to houses, babies being born, job changes, graduations, marriage issues, financial issues, health issues, and extended family issues! Then we moved. We've been in touch, but we rarely see each other. Well, tonight we are meeting at a favorite restaurant and I can't wait!

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I think that paragraph should count for a few gifts, don't you? (friends, fellowship, accountability, food, tradition, etc. Yep, I will start with 201 on my next list. Hey...it's my blog!)

One Thousand Gifts

187. I am thankful that Jason hung a shelf over Mary Evelyn's bed today.

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188. I am thankful that Mom took the girls and me to lunch yesterday.

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189. I am thankful that I got a roast, some cookie dough, and some sausage balls made and in the freezer today.

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190. I am thankful that the girls had fun carving jack-o-lanterns today.

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191. I am thankful that tomorrow we get to go to church!

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192. I am thankful that Jason installed a new smoke detector and carbon monoxide detctor today. He does a great job in his role of protector.

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193. I am thankful that it's almost bedtime. (I am so tired.)

Tiny Little Belly Dancer

Mom and Dad brought the girls belly dancer costumes from their trip to Greece and Turkey. Betsie was obviously having a grand time showing hers off for the camera!

One Thousand Gifts...Rachel

171. I am thankful that Rachel is bearing good fruit in her life.

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172. She can get along with most anybody.

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173. She loves to read.

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174. She is polite.

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175. She still thinks Jason and I are cool...and tells us so. How long can this possibly last?

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176. She was gracious when she she lost the privilege of having her own room to sharing a room with Mary Evelyn last summer.

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177. She is very helpful to me in many ways.

178. She has always been very healthy.

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179. She likes being homeschooled.

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180. She is memorizing Psalm 19...I'm so thankful for the word of God going into her heart.

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181. I am thankful for almost of decade of wonderful childhood memories with her...from potty training to learning to read to her solo in children's choir to our first visit to the ER for her broken arm to the excitement of Christmas mornings and birthdays.

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182. I am thankful that she loves Mary Evelyn and Betsie.

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183. I am thankful that she wants to stay a kid.

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184. I am so thankful that she trusts Jason and me.

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185. I am thankful for her sense of humor. (See the picture below.) Rachel is so fun to be with because she laughs so easily...at herself! But she does not use her humor to hurt others.

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186. I am thankful that I get to be her mom...what a gift.

*How weird...I just noticed that picture above has the word "evolution" as bold as can be in it. This picture was taken at a nature center where you just kind of walk through and read or look at the exhibits on your own. We just looked at the animals...I never noticed until now that there was any "evolution" to it at all. Oh well.

One Thousand Gifts

Today I thank God for these gifts:

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161. My girls were very well behaved as I was shopping and trying on clothes at Kohl's yesterday.

*162. I found several things that fit!

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163. Betsie stayed in the stroller the whole time.

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164. We ran into my sister, her husband, and my niece at Chick-Fil-A afterward and had lunch with them. A sweet surprise since I had never even been to that Chick-Fil-A before.

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165. Mom and Dad arrived home safely from their trip to Greece and Turkey.

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166. We enjoyed celebrating my niece Lydia's 2nd birthday last night with family. She is so cute and funny! And she and Betsie are best buds.

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167. Mom and Dad brought a few cool souvenirs from their trip. My girls are dressed as belly dancers this morning! LOL!

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168. My mother-in-law was nice enough to order just a few more books to help me out with my Usborne book party that closes sometime later today.

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169. I got to sleep a little late this morning. (which is good since I didn't sleep so great last night)

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170. I decluttered a bunch of unloved clothes from my closet yesterday.

A No No From George Muller

We are not doing school this week (officially) but I have been reading aloud a lot to the girls. We are currently reading two chapter books...not to mention numerous picture books. Our chapter books are a biography about George Muller, a missionary who is known for helping countless orphans in England, and Strawberry Girl by Lois Lenski, a fiction selection.

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Jason was working late the other night (popcorn ball night) so I decided to just read as much as I could to the girls on up til bedtime. I read a chapter of George Muller to the girls and then got up to put Betsie to bed. Rachel and Mary Evelyn continued coloring in the den for about 15 minutes until I came back and resumed reading. I decided to start back with Strawberry Girl when I came back. It never occured to me that these books could EVER be confused. They are drastically different in setting, style, the language of the characters, etc.

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In Strawberry Girl, Pa Slater is an alchoholic. It never says it quite like that, but that's what's going on. We read that he sold a steer and then went to taverns and gambled away the money, etc. leaving his family unable to purchase their basic necessities. After reading, I said to the girls, "Aren't you thankful that Daddy takes such good care of our family? When he earns money, he uses it for the things we need instead of being selfish." (Or something like that) Mary Evelyn got a mad look on her face and said, "George Muller shouldn't have done that! He's supposed to be a Christian!"

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It was hilarious! And hopefully I got it all cleared up that George Muller actually squandered NOTHING, but rather gave everything away. I did learn that if I am going to have more than one chapter book going at a time that I definitely need to keep the readings separated!

One Thousand Gifts...Popcorn Balls

Jason had to work late this evening. He has to eat a fancy schmancy dinner at a board meeting for a client. I learned from my wonderful mother that it's okay not to cook when husbands aren't home! Thanks Mom! So tonight we are thankful for POPCORN BALLS!

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156. I am thankful that my bribe was successful...(If you don't get your room cleaned, we can't make popcorn balls.)

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157. I am thankful that all three girls had FUN making them with me. I believe some people call this tying heartstrings.

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158. I am thankful that they turned out right considering I had never made them before. Could be a new fall tradition though.

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159. I am thankful that the fight I just got up to help resolve is already over.

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160. I am thankful the melted marshmallows aren't all over the kitchen as I feared might happen!

For the record, we will probably have a super healthy bedtime snack in a little while...fruit or something like that. Also, I have to mention that when Mary Evelyn was stirring the chocolate (white and dark) and the marshmallows, she said, "I wish this could be supper!" I said, "It is supper!" and her eyes got HUGE! She could not believe what she was hearing. For the moment, I am a cool mom.

One Thousand Gifts...Mary Evelyn

Let me just start by saying that I actually DO put spaces between each item on these lists. Blogger does weird things to my spaces. Sorry about that because I know it makes them harder to read.

Now, Mary Evelyn. I wrote a post about her not long ago, so some of this will be a repeat, but I do love this girl...so much to be thankful for with her!

133. I am thankful that she still loves to sit in my lap and snuggle.

134. She asks us to read the Bible to her at bedtime. (Right now I think it's a stall tactic, but I trust that God's word is not going to return void!)

135. She has been patient while waiting on me to get her new pink shelf ready to hang over her bed.

136. She was very agreeable and sweet last summer when she had to give up her room for a new little sister.

137. She is doing well in occupational therapy.

138. She is very healthy.

139. She found a salamander yesterday at her great grandmother's house! (The reason I am thankful is that she would have been very upset if she had not found anything at all.)

140. I am also thankful that she did NOT bring home the big toad she found yesterday!

141. I am thankful that she loves to color and draw.

142. She will listen to almost any chapter book as long as she can draw!

143. She is so funny!!!

144. She has lots of compassion.

145. I am thankful that I am learning more about her.

146. She helped me make my muffins last week.

147. We get to make popcorn balls together this week.

148. She has finished her morning chores with no complaining (might be because she was motivated to go hang out with the salamander, who is banished to the garage)

149. She did her best handwriting EVER last week when I implemented a technique I learned from the occupational therapist.

150. She loves to play "in and out," a math game that teaches addition.

151. She does not complain when I have to brush or fix her hair.

152. She and Rachel are playing together.

153. She makes me think about how I do things and how I say things!

154. She has the cutest freckles in the world.

155. She is a gift from God.

One Thousand Gifts

This morning I am thankful for:

120. A week off from school so I can focus on my home, relationships, fun stuff...all with no paperwork involved!

121. Nana and Papa babysat last night.

122. Disposeable diapers

123. My date with Jason last night

124. Honeycrisp apples (Thanks to Amy for recommending them.)

125. Mary Evelyn finding her blankie.

126. Mums and pumpkins on my front porch

127. Praise music...can't wait to see what we are singing this morning at church!

128. New recipes that my family likes

129. A warm and comfy bed

130. Paige arrived back home safely.

131. Jason taking the girls to a concert yesterday. (Featuring a quartet and a children's illustrator)

132. Got my new Yada Yada book in the mail yesterday...finished it last night before bed.

One Thousand Gifts...Jason

It will be easy to think of the many ways I am thankful to have Jason. I am so blessed by him!

76. I am thankful that he works so hard to provide well for our family.

77. I am thankful that he is so protective of me.

78. He eats anything I cook. That's not such a big deal now, but early in our marraige I am sure it saved us many fights!

79. He leads our family in regular family devotions.

80. He is taking us out to eat tonight.

81. He set up a computer and everything he needs at home so that he doesn't have to work late at night in the office.

82. I am thankful that he pushed me a little on the adoption issue. (after he prayed a lot of course!)

83. He reads me scripture when I am tempted to give in to fear.

84. He is "the heavy" with the kids when I need him to be!

85. He chops onions for me when he is here so I am not the teary eyed one for a change.

86. He looks handsome in a tux.

87. He was sneaky for months before our 10th anniversary with a few dollars here and there. Then he made up an excuse to get me to hand over my engagement ring so that he could have some extra diamonds added. I was clueless!

88. He invests for our future and has always made sure we had a budget.

89. He writes great love notes.

90. He doesn't complain when I haven't kept the house as neat as he might like.

91. He forgives me when I ask.

92. He cried when our babies were born.

93. He has put in countless hours playing girly stuff with Rachel and Mary Evelyn...and though he probably dreads some of that with Betsie, I know he'll give her that special attention too!

94. He honors his parents.

95. He led his brother to Christ 7 years ago.

96. He has proven that doing business in a way that honors God brings great blessings. He is a man of integrity.

97. He did almost ALL of the paperwork to get Betsie home because it was all too intimidating for me. And the things I did do were messed up!

98. He packs the car for every vacation...plus gets the gas and checks the oil, etc.

99. He is always on board with whatever my latest "thing" is...Feingold, Flylady, or whatever. He is so patient with my wacky ideas.

100. He gets up when a child needs him in the middle of the night. Mary Evelyn ALWAYS gets him instead of me if she is scared.

101. He loves to worship.

102. He can laugh at himself.

103. He takes out the trash.

104. I am thankful for all the times he has chosen home over something else he could have chosen.

105. I am thankful that he bug hunts with Mary Evelyn so I can stay far away from the creepy crawlies.

106. He is faithful to me and committed to our marriage.

107. He is making me memorize scripture with him each week.

108. He says I get the next new car. (years and years and years from now... LOL!)

109. He irons.

110. He loves to learn new things.

111. He wants to go on a mission trip with me. (maybe in the next few years....and maybe with Rachel too!)

112. He participates in our homeschooling, though most of that has been delgated to me.

113. He knows me better than anyone else.

114. He can fix stuff, but he knows when to call in extra help.

115. He calls home to check on how things are going during the day.

116. He says he's sorry when He needs to...and asks for forgiveness.

117. He changes diapers and gives baths.

118. He takes the girls on dates.

119. He loves me!

One Thousand Gifts...part 3

51. It RAINED this morning! Yay!

52. My pumpkin white chocolate chip muffins turned out very well. Yum!

53. My Amazon order shipped...the new Yada Yada book is ON IT'S WAY!

54. The internet

55. My girls cleaned their room really fast while ago.

56. It's FRIDAY!

57. My HSA debit card worked this morning at occupational therapy. (The crazy system had a glitch on Tuesday...not cool.)

58. Our new garden.

59. Good books...I am reading one by Elizabeth Geroge right now.

60. My shepherding group

61. My homeschool support group

62. I'm not too behind on laundry.

63. Yankee candles

64. Sunday afternoon naps

65. The leading of the Holy Spirit

66. My sister giving Mary Evelyn free speech therapy

67. My new neice who will be born the first week of December!

68. My new sister-in-law, Charity

69. My friend Hollie (Her birthday is coming up, so I'll save some specifics for that day!)

70. Feingold...though we are not as strict as we were at first, I have learned a lot about feeding our family in a healthier, more natural way.

71. Good podcasts to listen to while I do mundane chores (which I will start as soon as I finish here)

72. The Five in a Row website and curriculum

73. Squeaky shoes - Betsie squeaks every time she takes a step. We bought several pairs in China.

74. My two big girls learned to ride bikes this summer!

75. They also learned to swim! Yay!

One Thousand Gifts...Betsie

As I continue with the one thousand gifts challenge I am going to focus on the littlest person in our house. I'll work my way up (age wise!) the rest of the family in the days to come. By the way, if you haven't seen the slideshow about our adoption, scroll down and click the picture near the bottom of my sidebar.

Okay, starting at #26...

26. I am so thankful that Betsie's birth mother chose life for Betsie!

27. Betsie has been healthy since she came home.

28. Betsie has become very interested in letters lately. It's really cute!

29. I praise GOD for Betsie's healthy attachment to us!!!! HUGE answer to prayer there.

30. Betsie loves to remind us to pray.

31. She sleeps all night most nights now.

32. She is doing SO much better in the church nursery than a few months ago.

33. She is not too picky about her food.

34. She loves her sisters...Wachuh and Mia

35. Her pants don't fall off anymore. (Of course one pair is a 6-9 month size, but that's okay.) Her pants actually fell of as we were going through customs and she was in the process of becoming a US citizen. LOL!

36. She loves her grandparents. She calls them Boo-ah, Mimi, Nanny, and Poppy.

37. I am thankful I got to make crafts with Betsie the other night when Jason had the big girls out of the house.

38. I am thankful she mastered the glue stick during the above mentioned craft time!

39. I am thankful Betsie doesn't suck her thumb or use a pacifier...but I have always wondered if they just wouldn't let her in the orphanage.

40. She is pretty obedient most of the time. And the times she isn't seem like typical 2 year old stuff.

41. She loves to sing and it's a sweet thing to hear a two year old sing.

42. She still takes a good afternoon nap.

43. Her language development seems to be on track.

44. I am thankful for her hugs and kisses and how she pats my back.

45. I am thankful that she gets very excited when Jason comes home from work. She greets him with a hug and exclaims, "Daddy!" with such joy!

46. I am thankful for the times I can do puzzles or read books with her.

47. I am thankful that we got her home before her first birthday. (and all the other firsts we were blessed to see)

48. I am thankful it didn't take long to find Mr. Bear before bed tonight...gotta have Mr. Bear.

49. I am thankful for Betsie's eyes. I know that one day she may wish she were not different, but I love her uniqueness in our family.

50. I am thankful she is mine.

One Thousand Gifts Challenge

I admit it. I am going through a tough time with homeschooling and teaching one of my children. And because of this, I have not been too interested in blogging about homeschool. Yesterday was actually quite draining, but today was much better. And that's my life right now, a roller coaster of emotions and successes and failures.

It's because of this hard thing right now that I am taking Candace up on her challenge to list 1000 gifts from God between now and Thanksgiving. He is so good and so faithful. He is worthy of praise whether my children obey or not, sleep through the night or not, do their school work with a cheerful attitude or not. I never know if the day will bring smiles or tears, but GOD never, ever changes. How can I not be thankful?

My list will be accomplished in several posts (like Candace's) and will not be in any particular order. And if you should decide to participate in the challenge, please let me know!



So in an effort to praise my Father publicly and to think on things that are excellent and praiseworthy (and be more faithul in updating my blog), here goes!


1. I have been saved through faith!

2. Forgiveness

3. My husband (in general...specifics to come later)

4. My children (same as above)

5. That I can stay home with my children

6. Access to God's word (Not so true in some parts of the world)

7. A working hot water heater (I just enjoyed a hot shower!).

8. Good health

9. That we only had to wait 11 months to get Betsie's referral (The wait is actually 2 years now and climbing.)

10. I found a math game that Mary Evelyn LOVES. It's for learning addition facts.

11. School is done for the day!

12. We get to have leftovers tonight which frees up a little time for me this afternoon.

13. Mom and Dad arrived safely in Greece. (My crazy jet setting parents are touring the Greek isles!)

14. My Five in a Row book collection (I am only missing ONE book from volumes one through four!)

15. Our new garage door. No scraping windsheilds this winter! Woo hoo!

16. The $10 coupon for formula that Candace sent me and the sweet scripture she shared with me too. (Betsie still drinks one bottle at bedtime. Hey, she's a little squirt...she needs the nutrition!)

17. Rachel's obvious love for little children. Not just Betsie. I told her last night I think she would be great working with little people one day...and that she'll be a wonderful mommy.

18. We live close enough to Jason's office that he can come home for lunch many days.

19. Rose (our dog, who is curled up on my bed sleeping right now.)

20. Dr. Pepper (I do not like coffee.)

21. My ipod!

22. Mary Evelyn is doing pretty well with out her lost blankie, though she misses it still.

23. A church committed to teaching the truth of God's word.

24. A co-op the girls enjoy and that provides occasional breaks for me

25. Beautiful fall weather!

Still Here!

Gee...I guess I haven't been in a very bloggy mood lately. Oops. We've been busy with several appointments this month as well as our homeschool co-op and all of our regular responsibilities. I have been reading up on how to teach my girl according to her learning style, which definitely does not match my own. Jason and I are always praying that God would show us how to meet her needs. It's really hard, but very exciting as well. He's growing us!

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In other news, Rachel and Betsie both have cute new haricuts. To save our relationship, Rachel and I both agreed that she needs short hair so that I don't have to get the tangles out for her. Actually, she was somewhat cooperative, but hated every minute of the detangling process. I think she looks great with this new style! We're going to let her bangs grow out, but keep it all chin length and let her wear some cool clips to keep it out of her eyes. With Betsie, we just had to shape it up. Mary Evelyn wants long hair, and since she soesn't mind me brushing her hair or styling it, she gets to keep long hair!

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Jason is busy with work as usual, but he is able to work at home more now. We've set up a little home office for him in the corner of our bedroom so that he doesn't have to be gone as much. While I miss the chair that used to occupy that corner, I'd rather see my husband than any chair!

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Next week we have a week off from school but I plan to read a lot to the girls. I think this will be our first break this year that we won't be gone somewhere. Hopefully, I'll get a lot done!

Here's the new haircuts:

Rachel is getting so big! Sigh...

I don't know how to get good pictures of Betsie with that black hair. (This is still new for me...I'm used to light skin and redheads!) She looks adoreable though! Take my word for it! And it's a bonus that she likes getting her haircut...no tears and all smiles!

Sweet Fellowship

Last night I got to meet another Five in a Row friend. Paige is on her way to meet her husband for a few days and our city was on her route! Her husband is about half way through a military deployment so their time will be very short. Pray that it will be a sweet time and filled with good fruit!!!

Here is a picture with Hollie, then me, and then Paige

We met at a McDonalds. After hours in the car, we thought maybe Paige wouldn't mind if her sweet kiddos could have some PLAY TIME. The three of us together had nine happy, sweaty kids by the time we said good night.

Shhhhhh.........

Set a guard over my mouth, O Lord; keep watch over the door of my lips. Psalm 141:3

That's one of the verses I read this morning...it's one I am trying to remember throughout the day. I heard a sermon the other day (on Walk in the Word) and learned that when Scripture talks about us grieving the Holy Spirit, it is often linked with our words. (See Ephesians 4 for one example.) Is God trying to tell me something? Maybe I just need to be quiet today and speak only what is absolutely necessary or only when I am going to say something edifying. Otherwise, I am praying that God will truly set that guard over my mouth. I think my mouth could use a guard.