Love Passed Down

~my grandpa and his sister having lunch on the farm, 1916~

 

Today was the funeral for my great-uncle.  He was my grandpa's (who's pictured above) little brother.  He and his wife did so much good work for the Lord, loving others no matter the cost.  When they were first married they worked at a children's home for a few years, and adopted two sons from there.  There was another boy there at the home who they mentioned to my grandparents, and my grandparents decided to adopt him.  He was seven at the time, and became their youngest son, just a year younger than my dad.  My great-uncle and aunt kept on in their desire to love the fatherless after they moved back to the farm, and welcomed many foster children over the years.  It was so clear at the funeral how much he and his wife impacted people for the Lord, just by loving them, no matter what they did. 

 

I was thinking on the way home, that if they hadn't told my grandparents about the little boy who they ended up adopting, and my dad hadn't grown up with him and his cousins, learning compassion for those who come from hard places, he wouldn't have imparted that to me, and we might not have adopted at all.  It's amazing to think how God was influencing us, almost 60 years ago, before we were even born. 

 

"If your eyes could only see how God is moving all

 those chess pieces around the board for maximum impact,

it would blow your mind. 

He's up to something big that doesn't only affect you. 

He's also after those around you. 

Furthermore, He's not just interested in impacting the present. 

He is the One 'who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty' (Revelation 1:8). 

Within every 'is', God is mindful

of what 'was' and what 'is to come,'

and He intends to show Himself mighty in all of the above. 

One thing is certain: you can't accuse God of being shortsighted."

 

~ from Beth Moore, in Looking Up When Life is Looking Down ~

Reminded

We are now at the end of August.

 

We were supposed to know if they chose us to be

Mimi's family or not by now.

 

But, they haven't done anything on her case,

and we still don't know when they will get it done.

 

We got tired of it this week,

and wrote our social worker asking if we needed

to try and talk to a supervisor or something,

because really, it is getting ridiculous.

 

But, she said that although we could do that,

it might make them label us as "hard to work with",

and that wouldn't be good.

 

I guess it's typical for this process to take forever.

 

So, I was reminded yet again of this truth-

 

 

On a more positive note, the sunflowers are sure pretty this year!

Old News

 

Recently the old newspapers from our small town

were put online.  So I have been doing a bit of research

on the family that homesteaded our land and built

the limestone house that still stands here.

I was so pleased to find their daughter, Alice's,

obituary and read more about her.  She died in 1946.

 

"Alice as she was known to this community was born and

spent her whole life on the farm, homesteaded by her father.

 

A quiet kind and faithful wife, ever ready to do her part.

 

The last two years of her life were years of suffering.

It was then she sought comfort in God's word.

God in his mercy spoke to her soul.

When her friends told her, they were praying for her,

she expressed her gratitude to them."

 

It will be interesting to visit with her in heaven someday!

 

If you haven't heard the original story of our stone house, click here,

and if you would like to see more about Alice, click here.

 

I'm joining this Cottage Style Party and this Home Party

 

For the Love of Pink

The roses are putting on quite a show for the end of August!

So today I'm sharing them with you-

I hope you all have a lovely weekend!

 

 

The LORD will guide you always;

he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land

and will strengthen your frame.

 

You will be like a well-watered garden,

like a spring whose waters never fail.

 

Isaiah 58:11

Take My Hand

 

Are you tired of hearing my adoption woes yet?  You might have to put up with it for a little while longer.  Today we heard the news that nothing has been done towards our adoption of Mimi yet.  Things are moving extremely slowly, apparently.  In July the social workers said that we would have the meeting to determine if they would choose our family for Mimi by the end of August.  But today we heard that they haven't even started on the paperwork they have to complete in order to schedule the meeting.  So who knows when it will be.  So frustrating! 

 

Thankfully, God knows what we need, and yesterday he sent me this verse from Isaiah, posted by someone on Facebook.

 

Since ancient times no one has heard,
    no ear has perceived,
no eye has seen any God besides you,
    who acts on behalf of those who wait for him.

Isaiah 64:4

 

Such a great reminder for me, that we are not in reality waiting on slow social workers, which can be so frustrating, but we are waiting on God- and I know that he has a good reason for making us wait!  It's so comforting to know that.  This song keeps running through my head lately.

 



He Knows

 

I'm feeling a little lost around here this week since the kids

started back to school.  I told Andy I've lost my purpose.

Not that there isn't grass to mow, house to clean,

tomatoes to freeze, or sewing projects to work on!

 

This week I have been reminded again of God's complete

control and sovereignty over every aspect of our lives.

Truly we can trust Him!  Whether it concerns

our health, the kids' school situation,

our jobs, or the future,

GOD KNOWS ALL ABOUT IT!

 

As you do not know the path of the wind,

or how the body is formed in a mother's womb,

so you cannot understand the work of God,

the Maker of all things.

Ecclesiastes 11:5

 

 

Elderberries and Tea

 

Last year at this time, things were so dry, there was no water in

our creek, the ponds in the area were all dry, or just mud puddles,

the leaves were falling off the trees, and everything was brown.

But this year?  Totally different!  We have had so much rain already

this month that we are the 3rd wettest August on record, and we

are only 12 days into it!  So today, for tea, I wanted to have it down

by our slough, so I could listen to the water as I drank.

 

Along with mint tea I made some elderberry muffins this morning.

Last week I noticed we have some elderberry bushes growing in the

ditch down the road from us.  Elderberries are very healthy for you

and are supposed to boost your immune system.  I had never cooked

with them before, but these muffins turned out great!  I just used

our favorite blueberry muffin recipe, and substituted elderberries.

 

 

Above are what elderberries look like, and below is their flower.

Very pretty, don't you think?

So now if you have some growing in your ditch you know

what they are and you can make some muffins too.

 

 

Isn't this tea cup so pretty?  It is called "Girl at Well" by Spode.

 

I love teacups with flowers inside, they are such fun to drink from!

 

While I drank my tea SJ and DJ were enjoying the water also!

 

 

 

As were our cattle- I think they wondered what in the world

we were doing, they kept mooing at us.

 

 

Joining:

A Return to Loveliness

Tea Time Tuesday

 

 

 

Top Ten Boys Toys

Here at our house we have five sons, each one unique with different personalities and talents, but over and over again these toys have proven their worth- so here you go- our top ten most favorite toys for boys.

 

1.  A trampoline.  This thing is like a magnet.  If the boys are getting too restless for the house and I send them outside, this is where they go first.  Yes, I know, trampolines are not the safest thing in the world, but when have you known boys to be safe?  In this photo they are playing karate, by the way.

 

 

2. Legos.  This is the best toy by far at our house- at least for indoors.  There are endless possibilities of things to build and play with.  One of the best toys ever invented in my opinion!

 

 

3. Toy guns and swords.  Yea, this might be a little bit politically incorrect.  But boys are made to want to protect and defend from the "bad guys".  They love playing spies, cowboys and Indians, or hunting.

 

 

4. Bikes.  Every boy needs his own mode of transportation.  We enjoy going on bike rides as a family- plus it's good exercise!

 

 

5.  Hot Wheels cars and tracks.  These are also a great indoor toy for those times when it's too cold, too hot, too rainy, too snowy, etc. to play outside.  Our boys have had lots of fun figuring out which car is fastest.  Added plus- they're not too expensive!

 

 

6.  The Wii.  We got a Wii for Christmas a few years back, and it is a lot of fun.  You can play with several people at once, so it's more interactive than a lot of video games.  Another great toy for when the natives are getting restless.

 

 

7.  Remote Control vehicles.  These don't always last very long, at least at our house, but they are lots of fun while they do- so it's a bit of a toss up whether they are worth it or not.  We have especially enjoyed the r/c helicopters.

 





 

8.  Train track sets.  Our boys have spent lots of time putting together train tracks.  We like the GeoTrax variety, but any kind would be fun.

 

 

9. Fishing poles and tackle.  I'm not sure if this is really a toy, but our family really enjoys going fishing together.  The kids each have their own tackle box and they like to trade lures, bobbers and hooks.  I'll admit some of the boys like fishing a lot better than others, but there's always something fun to do when you're by water, even if you don't fish.

 

 

10.  Blankets.  Not only are blankets great for sleeping, they also have a lot of other uses at our house.  Our kids each have their big blanket for sleeping, then they have a couple other smaller ones that are used for eating ice cream on in the family room, building tent forts in the house, or tying around their necks for a cape.

 





 

So there you have it, our family's 10 favorite boy toys.  Now you have an idea of what to get the boys in your life for Christmas! (:











Good News

Well, we have some good news concerning our adoption progress!  Our family is definitely going to be considered to adopt an eleven year old girl!  Of course it always takes longer than we think it should, so the meeting where they decide if we'll be chosen for her won't happen until the end of August.  Then if we are chosen for sure, we can start having visits with her.  So far we are the only family interested.  We are praying that God will be preparing our hearts for each other, and that His will would be done in all our lives.  I wish I could tell you more about her but I don't think that is allowed.  God knows.

Don't be deceived, my dear brothers.

Every good and perfect gift is from above,

Coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights,

Who does not change like shifting shadows.

James 1:16-17

True

 

How are you all doing?  Enjoying the end of summer?

We are still trying to not think about school too much.

 

I've been doing a bunch of painting, I'll have to share

that with you another day. 

 

But today I wanted to share this verse-

something I have to say to myself over and

over some days!  I think I'm going to get

it printed off and hang it on our wall.