Different Plans

My day started as normal with the alarm clock ringing at 6:37am.  Kyle and I jumped up and got two of our kids ready for school and on the bus.  I sat down with my mug of coffee and had some quiet time with my Bible and devotional.  My devotion talked about what Christs blood has done for me. Great reminder as we approach Easter this coming weekend of the power of Christs blood that was shed to cover my sin. The rest of the kids started waking up and I wrapped up my time.  Aubrey came downstairs saying that she didn't want to eat any breakfast because her belly hurt.  We have a rule in our house that you only stay home from school for a belly ache if I see puke... I know I'm kind of tough:)  She went and laid on the couch and then I heard puking in the bathroom.  Poor little thing.  So back on the couch with a blanket and a bucket.

The problem with being a mom (the only one, right?) is when one of your kids gets sick, it doesn't matter that you had a HUGE list of things to get done in the day, you stop, put a movie on, and hunker down for the day. Well, that is what has happened today.  Last night I had made my TO DO list for the today.  I had my bags all laid out and my Easter grocery list written.  I was prepared for a very productive day.  Instead I am still in my pajama's, drinking my second cup of coffee, and hearing Cars (the movie) in the background.  

There are very few days where I am at home all day...so as I am pacing around trying to figure out what to do I remembered that blog that I had been keeping.  The blog that I hadn't written in since last October.  Wow!  So how do I catch y'all up on 6 months of our busy family???  Don't know if that is possible.  Rather than trying to make my brain think too hard about everything that has been happening in our lives I'll just hit on some that stand out for me.

SO we moved.  That is big.  I think (I should remember) it was in the end of November right before Thanksgiving. We moved across town, out of our rental home into a beautiful home close to church and school.  We are loving the house, the space and the proximity to so many things that we do daily.  Kyle has almost finished painting the whole house.  He is a hard worker and has done a great job.  We are in the process of getting some flooring redone.  Excited to not have plywood in my entryway and kitchen:)  

Our new house

My mom and grandma flew in to help us get settled

We made the 13 hour drive to WI twice this past winter.  We were there for Thanksgiving and the week after Christmas.  It was great to spend time with family and friends and introduce much of our family to our new kids.  My parents now have 13 grand kids all between the ages of 3-10...the cousins had lots of fun swimming, sledding, and playing.  Our travel home after our Christmas visit went from bad to worse when the complete highway system in Indiana closed down due to extreme cold and snow.  It took us two nights in hotels and three days of travel.  From now on we will do very little travel in WI in the winter.

The cousins

I thought that Thanksgiving would be a great time to get family pictures...forgot it is cold in WI in November:)  Anna still got some great ones.

Our travel didn't leave a bad enough taste in our mouths about WI winters because a week later Kyle and I were on a plane back to WI.  He has been asked to speak at Snow Camp at Lake Lundgren Camp.  This is the snow camp that we had been a part of when we were in WI, so it was great to see friends and be a part of it again.  We brought 7 girls from our youth group with us. They were amazed by the cold and snow:)  Our travel was smooth.

After our second winter in VA I have learned that it is normal to cancel school for an inch of snow or even the forecast of an inch of snow.  It has been a complete change from our winters in WI.  When the weather man says snow is coming here people panic.  The store shelves empty of milk and bread.  Kyle and I chuckle.  Well, we saw a different side of winter in February.  The weather man was forecasting a big hit...which we didn't really believe.  I stocked up on soda, wine, and hot cocoa:)  By the time all the snow had fallen, we had over 20 inches.  It was a winter wonderland.  Snow removal in VA is almost non existent. We did not see a plow until 3 days after the snow.  Thankfully it was 50 degrees a couple days after the snow came, so melting helped to get us out of the house.

After the snow it was not long until we started to see buds starting to come out and grass beginning to green.  I love spring time.  It just feels fresh.  We have had some 80 degree weather but it hasn't stayed. Our temps have been like a roller coaster.  Beautiful and green through.

The end of March we have started our birthday season.  From March 29 to July 1st we have 7 birthdays and an an anniversary.  I feel like I'm making a birthday cake every other week:)

 

Our biggest news happened just last week.  Kyle and I signed the Adoption Placement for Ciara, Tyler, and Kaleb.  The paperwork now goes to a judge and should be complete by the end of May.  The paperwork that we signed had the kids new names (middle and last) on it and seeing their names in writing made me tear up.  I have so many emotions about what is going on in our family.  Emotions of excitement when I see our kids getting along and caring for each other.  Emotions of sorrow when Elayna tells me that she liked it better when it was just her and her sisters.  Emotions of sadness when I see the affects of what a traumatized childhood looks like. Emotions of exhaustion (not sure if that is an emotion) when I look at what needs to be done and I feel spent.  And thankfully, emotions of hope because I know that God has a plan for our family and He is with me through all of my emotions.  It still blows my mind when I think back only 8 months to what our lives looked like and now I couldn't picture my life any different.  Please remember our family in your prayers.

SO that is my recap.  

I am learning more and more each day that I need to rely fully on Christ for my strength and slow down and be thankful for what is around me.