Are you watching?

If you are not watching, The National Parks: America's Best Idea, on PBS, you are missing the most enjoyable show on TV. It's just on this week, through Friday, but if you've missed some you can watch them online at pbs.org.

I will never understand how anyone can look at the beauty of these parks and not believe that there is a God who created it all. It takes my breath away. I cannot wait until I can go and see them all in person someday. I've only ever seen the Grand Canyon, and it was one of the best weeks of my life, completely relaxing, full of worship for the God who created it all.

Really, I'm not kidding, turn it on. It's only in the evenings at 7 and then again at 9 (central), you will not be sorry. It's made by Ken Burns, who if you don't know is a genius and his documentaries are wonderful.

Verizon made me cry

So I didn't want to continue to bore you with the details, but we have yet to have more than 24 hours with reliable internet. It continues to have problems, including not working at all. Then the other day I opened my mail to find a bill for our "service" beginning August 10th. I know I will not be paying that and that I can get it taken care of, but after daily talks with Verizon, 5 days spent at my house waiting for the technician, and an internet that is as we speak not working (I'm at Chick Fil A), I was hurt to get that bill. So being a woman, what did I do, I cried and told Kyle I cannot handle this anymore, you have to get this bill taken care of. It's just too much I feel wronged, like a good friend lied to me, when in truth it's a big company continuing to meet my expectations, what can I say, I'm tired of it all.

Adopting? Show off a little...

If you are in the process of adopting you have got to check out this cute online boutique: Adoption Mama.

They have a shirt that says, "Yes I'm still adopting. No I haven't heard anything yet. But each day brings me closer to my child." Man, I wish I would have had that shirt back when we were waiting for Jack, maybe next time.

They also have pregnant on paper and pregnant with love shirts.

Oh, and they are all super cute, not boring t-shirts but nice shirts. I just bought an "Adoption Mama" one and can't wait to wear it around town.

Passion

It's funny the things your children love. Some of them you know clearly, that's from me, she has it in her blood. But others leave you marveled at the way that a little girl that you gave birth to and that you spend almost every waking second with, could have her own real passion.

For Kylynn it's ballet. About a year ago she saw a ballerina and it was love at first sight. Ever since then it's been her greatest desire to take ballet. Due to our crazy summer I never managed to get my act together and get her in a class, but when we moved it that all made sense to me. God had something different in mind, he blessed us with some wonderful neighbors who love the Lord and offer free (yes, you read correctly) free ballet classes.

She had her first class on Monday. She went in and sat on the edge of the couch as instructed waiting for class to start. She sat perfectly still with her legs crossed looking to be an adult trapped in a three year old's body. Then she proceeded to do everything the teacher taught her, her world now consisting of only the people in that room, I was a distant memory.

I was proud of her, raising a three year old who acts thirteen is hard. But it's moments like these that make me realize that I love that about her, I love her strong independent self, because after all she does get that from me.

Rainy days

We had a rainy weekend here, but it was one of those wonderful ones, where you are left feeling just as rejuvanated as your yard is. We played a little in the rain, then took baths and stayed in the rest of the morning and luckily I had run to the video store on Friday, so we had a fun family movie to watch.

That afternoon when the rain had turned to drizzle we took the kids out on a nature hike. We found some bugs to put in our bug jar and really neat snails. We found lots of leaves and plants to look at, and I even found some basil that I could pick for the capriese salad I was making for dinner (I miss my garden). Kylynn wore her rain boots and waded through giant puddles, Jack who is obsessed with water refused to not participate, so he swam in puddles! :)

I know for a lot of Texans it's the summer that makes them wonder why it is that they live here. But for me, it's the fall. There is nothing as sad to me as the way summer just sticks around here until winter is ready for his turn. But, this year has been the best transition to fall that I can remember since my first year here. It actually feels like we've changed seasons with all the rain, the cloudy days, and the much lower temperatures. I hope you're taking the time to enjoy it as well.

First Day of School

Today was both of the kiddos first day of school, or that's what we call it. Kylynn started pre-school (she was sick the real first day) and Jack began Mother's Day Out. So every Thursday, I'll have a few hours to start going through the piles and long lists that have accumulated around my house! :)

Does anyone know how to teach her to smile with her eyes open :)This outfit has finally gotten too small for Jack, whoop!!

Loving your brother

I've been struggling lately with something. I felt the Lord speak to my heart a few weeks back that I needed to be setting my alarm and getting up before the kids in order to have time to spend with Him. This was not a call to legalism, rather a Father who desperately wants to spend time with me and He knew that in the morning was the only time (for me) that it would happen. But I've been failing, miserably. There's always something, a sick child, an errand I run at night, wanting to get things done around the house, that makes me disregard the specific longing He placed in my heart. I've been managing to get up before the kids once a week at most.

So today this was heavy on my heart as I went to Jack's check up. Then his doctor came in, he had a student in tow as usual. And he proceeded to tell the student about our story of adding Jack to our family. He looked at me and said, "You know I really admire your faith, talk about putting faith in action. If only more people would do that think of the difference it would make." I told him that I wish I would put my faith in action in many other ways that I fail at all the time and that I guess we all have our strengths. We went on to talk about Jack and how pleased he is with how he's doing. He hugged me goodbye, telling me how happy he is to know our family.

I left that office with my spirits lifted, my outlook altered. Our adopting Jack doesn't somehow undo any other sins of disobedience in my life, but God used the doctor to remind me that I am not someone without the ability to walk by faith, I am not a failure, just someone in process.

What a difference we would make if all believers would put their faith into action the way the doctor does, speaking of his love of Christ, his beliefs openly to his students, his paitents. Not being afraid to praise and lift up our brothers and sisters in Christ. I think this would be a different world if we really loved our brother as ourselves, took the time to pay attention to them, and find ways we can love them in what it is they're going through right at that moment.

I couldn't have said it better myself

For my thoughts on the debate over President Obama speaking to the schools of America, I will direct you to Sit a Spell because I couldn't have said it better myself.

Like father like son

One things about Kyle that was a surprise to me was his ability to fix, build, or create anything. If I can dream it up he can do it (he would say I'm exaggerating, but this is my blog and that's how I see it! :)

So Jack gets to see daddy fix things a lot, especially in the new house, the other day he found Kyle's tool box and decided to do some fixing of his own.

You at 18 months

Jack,

You are 18 months old right now. Young enough to love me fully and perfectly, young enough to want your mommy to hold you and snuggle you several times a day. You still have no problem with me doing things for you, you let me hold your cup at night while you drink your pediasure milk, it has yet to occur to you to say, "I do it!".

And yet there are several things that you can do all by yourself and the cute way you go about it always makes me smile. You can climb a stool, brush your teeth, follow simple instructions, eat with a fork or spoon, and throw, boy can you throw things!

You are a giggle addict. You love to laugh, but you love even more to make others laugh. You are my little comedian. Your current act includes peek-a-boo, rolling your eyes back into your head, and making a funny face, simple yes, but very affective at getting a good laugh.

You have decided that the puppy is yours. You chase her around all day and because you are so light she actually lets you lay on her, much to my amazement. You now like to point to her and make your idea of a barking noise, and sometimes you point to her and moo...close but not quite.

You are going to get to go to "school" this year for one day a week, and I'm not sure exactly what I'll do with myself, I'll miss you so. But I know it's important for me to share you with others, there are people out there who could use one of your hugs or a good laugh.

Eyes

We traveled to Temple yesterday for Jack to see a pediatric Ophthalmologist, and the trip went really well and there was only good news. Although Jack does have a slight appearance of having crossed eyes (there's a fancy medical term), he doesn't actually have crossed eyes. They also used a machine to see if he needed glasses (for the life of me I can't imagine how that works) and his eye sight is pretty good, although he may need glasses to see the board when he starts school, which the doctor said is very common for Asian people-I never knew that.

While we were driving home I looked at Kyle and said, God really did answer my bigger than life prayer when we learned Jack was our son, that he would heal any medical problems that he may have. We went from thinking that there was potential for several health problems to a perfectly healthy little boy, I stand amazed.

We'll go back in a few months for them to make sure that they still don't see any evidence of crossed eyes.