Fountain Head

Fountain heads make me happy.

Faith In Action

Today was "Faith In Action" Sunday at our church. We DIDN'T go to church, not in the usual way. Everyone was encouraged to participate in service projects that ministered to the community.

With our crowd, I was hard pressed to find the right match. Bob wanted to use his skills, the boys wanted to work in the kitchen, and the babies? It was a stumbling block for me. As a family, we had a hard time coming up with a good plan and it changed incessantly until last night. I went with my "gut", also known as a prompting from the Holy Spirit. We created our own project.

First we worked on a few things at home.

Kloey made the cookies pretty much all by herself.

I am very proud of her for doing this.
Only one minor glitch when she accidentally turned the
oven off then back on to 170 degrees.

Micah helped. See the white flakes in his hair?

He tried the empty oatmeal container on as a hat.

Our resident artist did what she does best and created.

She designed and implemented the entire cover herself.

Amazing.

Erika copied a scripture verse to put on the inside of each card.

James 1:27

Kloey is diligently working on the cookies. She stuck with it.

The finished products ready for delivery.

Each card handmade with love.

We got dressed and prepared to head out into the neighborhood.
You see, we have the "orphan" thing down pretty well.

But what about the widows in that Bible verse?
It just so happens that God gave us a neighborhood rich in widows,
five within spitting distance of our house.

Five widows who were all alone this morning.

Kloey held the cards.
Trey carried the cookie bag.

Lindsey pushed Micah.

I tagged along with the baby.

Can I tell you what happened? The blessings poured down like rain.

We knocked on the first door. She opened it with a surprised look on her face. The kids stop by once in awhile but we don't all amass on anyone's doorstep very often.

Kloey handed her the card. Trey handed over the cookies.

Her chin trembled, her eyes watered as she looked at the front of the card.

We looked at each other, not sure what to think.

"You don't know what this means to me," she said.

"My daughter died this week and I.....". She didn't have any more words.

She gave all the kids a group hug. She thanked us.

God showed up. BIG TIME.

Walking down the driveway, I asked who thought they had made a difference in someone's life today?

Every hand went up.

Small Things Make Me Happy

The big yellow truck came today.

I caved.

I bought those decadent chocolate inside, chocolate outside bars.

Then I really caved.

I gave the little boys their own whole bar.

Mostly because they ate a great dinner.

Trey said, "Good chicken."

We smiled. It was fish.

Okay, everyone outside.

We were waiting for someone to come home.

Sweetness and silliness go hand in hand.






It was good, very good...

Whose Problem Is It?

The elbow.

It has mystified me for over four and a half years.

Three meals a day times 365 days a year times four years.

That's how many times I have "asked" to have this elbow taken off the table.

Or so it seems.

Asked. Requested. Wheedled. Begged. Pushed. Other not so proud moments.

Is it developmental delay? RAD? Defiance? OCD?

Does it need to be labeled?

The still small voice has convicted me lately about whose problem this really is.

I've done what I can do. The seeds have been planted and watered.

I need to grow up and let it go.

I'm not going to win in the short term.

God's not interested in the short term.

Here is a post from Uganda that helped me to get a grip.

And here is another post from Uganda that wrestled me to the ground.

Still learning. I hope I never stop.

I'll let you know what happens to the elbow, someday...

A Day in the Life

Today was a rather low key day, I thought.

The weather was gray and rainy. The kids went out to dodge raindrops at one point. They had to go. I needed them to go. They went.

Herded four students through math and grammar.

Took play dough out of the mouths of babes.

Washed six loads of laundry including bedding of one very wet child.

Laid on the couch for awhile this afternoon.

Erik made a delicious breakfast: french toast and sausage.
Lunch consisted of cornbread by Erika and beans and franks by Kloey.
Dinner was sloppy joes because people arrived in shifts.

It was a slow day until....

Who needs Lincoln Logs when you have carrot sticks.

This is an elbow. It deserves a post of its own.

Two very cute sisters can't be beat.

Cute, cuter, cutest.

Perfecting the fish face.

Here is the creator of the carrot sculpture eating the evidence.

Frantic voices from around the corner, "Mom, you gotta come see."
One look told me the camera had some work to do.
They thought this up on their own.

When you have creative big sisters, co-toileting turns into Karate Kids.

Hi-ya!

Deteriorating further: these boys will never live this stuff down.
Gypsy mama?

Often I wish for a blog sound recorder.
The laughter accompanying the after dinner antics was of great benefit.
Smiles, laughter, hootin' and hollerin'.
Good medicine.

Orphans and Widows

James 1:27

Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

Tucked my "orphans" into bed and spent an hour on the phone with a widow.

This is where it's at people.

Doing love.

Bumper Bellies

When you get tired of kicking the soccer ball around, it has to go somewhere.
They thought this up all on their own.

Can't see his toes.

About to birth?

Bustin' bumper bellies = Serious fun!

They crack me up.

I hope they will always be best friends.
I thank God every day that they have each other.

Who Needs TV?

What happens when a two year old gets into a drawer that he shouldn't?

He grabs a roll of contact paper and gets creative with his sister, of course.

I'll talk and you listen.

What a smile! Cora loves to play.

She is a great sport when it comes to playing with the little ones.

I love it when the kids get creative with what they can find.

Gotta Love That Face

I think she liked the prunes.

Smiling From the Inside Out

It's happening.
It has taken a long time.
We've been waiting almost 5 years.
Liken it to a butterfly before it emerges from its cocoon,
or an onion that gets peeled one layer at a time.


She is smiling from the inside out.

A real smile is emerging that lets us in.
We can see her heart.
We knew it was there, but it was so hard to reach.

When you have lost everything you ever knew....
more than once....
when your story is more than you can bear....
it is hard to be happy, to trust, to love.

Real beauty comes from within.