For the orphans......

And I got what I wanted for Christmas. Patrick fell asleep in the car last night on the way home from my Uncle's house and slept the whole hour long ride home and it was only 6:30pm! I have been saying for a long time that I would know that he was beginning to heal and trust us when he would allow himself to fall asleep in the car. Something he would never do before no matter how late it was or how long the car ride or how tired he was. You can imagine my joy when I looked back and saw him completely zonked out. Thank you Jesus! It was the best Christmas present I got.

'Tis the season

To Elf yourself........

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

I wish I could have got the whole family in there but 5 was the limit.

Road Trip

We finally had our first road trip in the new van. Sweet ride!

It was kind of a last minute decision. We weren't sure if it was a good idea or not taking all five kiddos on a three hour trip down to Ocean City, MD to a place we had never been but we are so glad we did.
Thursday night.
Here the kids are all packed up and ready to go. Hang loose Grace!

Potty stop at Micky D's. Oops! Grace had to go in in her jammies! Caught in the act! Hang loose Dad.

So why did we go down to Ocean City, MD you ask? Well let me try to explain......
It was sort of like a marriage gathering type thing. Not exactly a conference but just a gathering of christian believers. There wasn't any type of agenda which made it interesting. There was no speaker slotted except the Holy Spirit. ;) However we were totally blessed by being there more so than any other "conference" we had attended previously.
One thing that made it different was that kids were welcome which of course made it easier for us to go. Besides, kids are a big part of our marriage at this time in our life so why not include them? Asher loved playing this little bongo drum during worship. He was really serious about it too the whole time. It is so stinkin' cute.
Here the kids observed mommy and daddy renewing our marriage vows and sharing a little wedding cake. It was very reminiscent of our own wedding when I warned Christian under my breath, "if you dare smash that in my face, I will kill you." (Sorry for the blur, the flash wasn't on.)
This was the ministry that sponsored the event. It is a building right off the boardwalk that has a huge ministry to the homeless and needy. They feed over 300,000 people during the summer months. Most of them aren't homeless and just come for the free meal but they are fed and loved anyway.
Looking down the street you can see that it is right next door to a dance club and during the summer the line for the club goes right past the Sonspot where the Jesus Film is playing 24/7 on a large screen in a special window with sound.
On Saturday night, our last evening there, they had a special "Happy Birthday Jesus" celebration. Some who were there had volunteered there in the past and some had just come in off the streets that night. We heard some amazing stories of healings, miraculous provisions and broken lives made whole by the love of Jesus. This ministry never asks anyone for money or food and they have been around for over 20 years. They don't even have a website with a paypal donation button yet God continues to provide. As quickly as they can give away the food more continues to come in. They never know who is going to show up to volunteer to help that day but someone always does and the needs are always met. They have no debt and completely trust the Lord to provide for their every need. We were so inspired and our faith was strengthened immeasurably.
Enjoying the food and fellowship.

Aiden found a shofar again. You should hear that kid blow that thing! I tried to video it but the sound quality was no good. You have to hear it in person. When he plays even the adults stop and listen. Guess what he wants for Christmas now? Funny huh? He is really good and I am hoping that someday he may play my favorite instrument, the french horn.
Christian took one quick trip down to the deserted beach for a few shots before we left. Too cold for me though and I preferred to stay inside where it was warm.

We stayed through their Sunday morning meeting and left late that afternoon. It was hard to leave as we met so many wonderful people and didn't want it to end.

So new friends were made, faith was increased, bellies and hearts were filled to overflowing. The trip was blessed beyond measure. The ride up and back was smooth and uneventful and Patrick was an angel (well almost). Christian offered to trim a couple of Sonspot's little trees on the property as an excuse to go back again soon so hopefully it won't be long.

New family pictures

You probably noticed the new family shot at the top of the blog. We had someone with a nice camera get some good pictures of our family when we were at my parents house for Thanksgiving. It's not the easiest thing to get everybody looking and not doing their "fake camera smiles" but I thought they turned out not too bad considering.

This man really loves his wife.

I am loving that filter that she had on her flash that gave us celebrity white teeth.

Grace maxin' and ralaxin'

This guy is super good at the fake smile thing but he is still a heart throb so we'll let him slide.

Those eyelashes are to die for.

This is the only one we got of Patrick without a goofy face. He totally has the best smile ever but only wanted to make strange faces for the pictures that day.

Love those rosy cheeks.

The whole gang.

My loving parents.

My sisters and I.

Wish we got along this great when we were younger. It sure would have been a lot more fun. It was all my fault, I admit it but I am glad now that we have the rest of our lives to "dwell together in unity" - Psalm 133:1 (as my mother likes to quote oh so often). I guess she just figured she would keep quoting it and eventually it would stick. So all you mothers out there with bickering children just keep claiming the promises of God over your children and know that His word will not return void.

Isaiah 55:11 "So shall my word be that goes forth out of my mouth: it shall not return to me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it."

A Child's Thought of God

They say that God lives very high!
But if you look above the pines
You cannot see our God. And why?

And if you dig down in the mines
You never see Him in the gold,
Though from Him all that's glory shines.
God is so good, He wears a fold
Of heaven and earth across His face--
Like secrets kept, for love untold.

But still I feel that His embrace
Slides down by thrills, through all things made,
Through sight and sound of every place:

As if my tender mother laid
On my shut lids her kisses' pressure,
Half-waking me at night and said,
"Who kissed you through the dark, dear guesser?"

~Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Jelly, goats and cookbooks

I finally got around to some domestic chores after taking quite a bit of a break this summer. Christian's favorite crab apple jelly was just something I couldn't neglect. This is the best because it is practically free with fruit off of a tree that most people ignore. It is Christian's favorite jelly though. Sweet and tart and oh so good.

First it's chickens now it's goats. The chickens finally aren't escaping anymore but for some reason we keep getting escaped goats and they instantly head over to our precious baby beech tree that Christian dug up out of the woods and transplanted in our backyard. We love beech trees and are looking forward to the day when it is tall and majestic with its smooth gray bark and silvery leaves. Unfortunately the goats like it too but to eat. Grrrr.......

I have also been working on my Tastebook. Have you seen this site? Is anybody a member already? It is awesome. You can upload and/or share your favorite recipes with your friends by creating your own Tastebook online. It's free to create and share and for what I consider a minimal fee you can have your own personal recipe book printed and shipped to you. You can add recipes anytime as it is spiral bound.

I don't have too many recipes in there yet but I am having a lot of fun working on it as the site is really interactive. If you want access to my growing list of recipes let me know and I can send you an invite so you can join for free and start your own.

With Thanksgiving coming up I was sure to add my famous Sweet Potato Casserole recipe that I HAVE to make every year and the one that everyone always asks me the recipe for.
I'll let you know when it is complete and you can even order an "L" Family Cookbook for yourself!
Check it out. You won't be disappointed.

Giveaway

No it's not my giveaway silly. I don't have anything to give away except maybe some old broken toys, a few germ laden stuffed animals or some funny drawings by my kids. Since I am assuming that nobody out there wants any of those I will send you over to my friend's blog for her fabulous giveaway of these hand made German starts. Aren't they gorgeous? She is one uber crafty gal and you would love her blog.
She also has a tutorial on there where she so kindly demonstrates how you can make some of these on your own. What lovely gifts they would make and they really don't look that difficult either. I plan on making some myself.
Go check it out!

Friday school with Aiden

Patrick doesn't have school on Fridays so Aiden took it upon himself to have a little book time with Patrick. It just warms this Mommy's heart to see our children being so loving to him. He loves this I Spy book because he LOVES finding things. If you want to see him excited just ask him to find something for you. It is so cute.

Patrick had his best week at school ever this past week. I got notes home from his teacher and speech therapist almost everyday saying how well behaved an co-operative he was this week. The bus driver even told us a couple of the days how the teachers commented on how good he was that day when they put him on the bus to go home. He was exceptionally happy at home this week as well and it has been such a blessing.

Thank you sooooo much for all of those who have been praying for him and us.

Glimmers of Hope

To some this may seem minor but to us it was huge.

If you know Patrick in person you know that this boy does not sit still. He is constantly on the go and always seems to be "on edge". He flinches and jumps at the dropping of a cup or the closing of a cabinet door.
He has NEVER fallen asleep in the car no matter how long the drive or how late at night it is. He is constantly "on the alert" which I attribute to what happened to him in his past. It is understandable but sometimes I wonder if he is ever going to get over it. Will he ever relax and trust us? How long will it take? We have prayed and prayed and prayed that the Lord would take those awful memories of his past away from him and that he would learn to trust, relax and know peace and safety like our other children.

Last night we got a glimmer of hope.

He fell asleep on the couch while we were watching a movie with the kids. It wasn't even that late but he lay his head down on the pillow for a few minutes and Christian and I looked at each other in wonder. Then he sat up and waved to Christian and pointed to his pillow as if to say "I am going to sleep now". Christian waved back and Patrick smiled and put his head down on the pillow and went to sleep. Not only did he stay asleep through out the rest of the movie but was able to be carried to bed without startling. I could hardly watch the movie but kept looking back at him expecting him to jerk awake again. Normally when we go in to his room and he is asleep his startles so easily and awakens at the drop of a feather.

The Lord has been teaching us about hope lately. Just when I think I have learned all my lessons with Patrick and am ready to move on the Lord gives us something else to work on. The Lord has taught us about endurance, patience, genuine biblical love, long-suffering, rejoicing in tribulation, constancy in prayer, faith, how to fight spiritual battles and now hope.

Hope is a joyful anticipation or expectation. It is a strong confidence that God has good planned for us and that He is working all things for our good. We are learning to joyfully expect good things to come of this experience in our lives even when all appearances seem to show the opposite to be so.

Ps 31:24 Be of good courage, and he shall strengthen your heart, all ye that hope in the LORD.

Ps 71:14 But I will hope continually, and will yet praise thee more and more.

Ps 146:5 Happy is he that hath the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the LORD his God...

Ro 5:3-5 And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

What a relief it is to be able to rejoice in hope and know that the Lord will work this all for ours and Patrick's good as it says in Romans (8:28) which is easy to quote and not as easy to really believe.

Gifted Hands

We just watched this movie the other night and it has to be one of the most inspiring movies I have ever seen. We watched it with the kids although it was a little intense at time and we had them close their eyes. There was no bad language though or indecency.

It is the story of an Afican American young man who grew up fatherless, impoverished and underprivileged who at the age of ten was a failure in school. But with the encouragement of his mother who believed that he could succeed he became one of the worlds leading neurosurgeons.

It is the absolutely inspiring story of how with sheer determination, a will to succeed, parents who believe in you and faith in God a person can overcome with biggest obstacles and become what no one would have ever though possible

With God all things are possible. Matt. 19:26

We rented our copy at Redbox

Now I need to get the book.