He is Greater.....John 3:30 says He must become greater, I must become less"

This photo is from last summer's vacation in northern California.  I enjoy looking at these photos from our trip last year.  This is one of those moments that will not happen twice.  I say that, primarily, because we sold the RV and there is no way we can afford to take all 7 of us back to the northern  Pacific ocean beach any time soon......but also for other reasons.  Never again will Claire be 15.....or Precious Maryn 5 years old, and able to share this moment as sisters........10 years is a big age gap for sisters.   Tonight they shared a new bonding ritual.  Claire introduced Precious to the movie High School Musical.  All of us girls sat in the basement tonight and watched the movie together and Precious loved it and Claire loved that she could share it with her little sister.  I loved that Claire could release the pressure valve of her own stress regarding high school drama.  It's been a hard high school week for Claire with...

Well, we made it.  1 grade school extravaganza, 1 concert and 2 graduations......and 3 times the public health visits I normally make because it is the end of the month and I had lots of moms and babies to see......and most nights we even ate home-cooked food.  Tomorrow morning I have 2 more visits to finish out the week.  Then, finally the weekend. We will take Grace to the airport Sunday morning and she will fly home.  Claire made her a video of all of us telling her reasons why we love her and tonight, after graduation we watched it and cried and laughed......and we had cheese cake and cupcakes and deviled eggs because they are her favorites. Next week we prepare for the year-end dance recital for Precious and Claire....and the kids finish school on Wednesday at noon.....and in 2 weeks we start summer.  I still have to work in the summer, so the big kids all have jobs and the little kids will go to daycare and we will strive to enjoy warm lazy summer d...

Every year, I long for the month of May.  May means warm days, flowers, soccer and baseball......it means planning for summer and easier days.  Every year, I seem to get May Amnesia.  I have decided this is a real condition. Every May I look at my calendar with dis-may......pardon the pun.  So many things on the agenda.  Concerts and programs and graduations and events.  Work deadlines and conferences and trainings.  I am an introvert.  I like to be home.  Each of these things causes me stress and a draining of energy.  They are all good things, things to celebrate and savor.....but they empty my cup. How do I fill my cup?  Espeically in May?????? I have a strategic plan to start my work schedule a bit later in the morning so that I can get everyone situated and then go for a walk or some form of exercise.  I know that if I am in better shape I feel less exhausted and stressed.  I also have a plan for meals......and...

Grace is leaving soon.  She graduates next week, and then has 3 more sleeps before we put her on a plane for home.  She will spend the summer with her family and friends in South Korea and then fly to Buffalo, New York for college in the fall.  I am really bad at good-bye.  I am great with "welcome!".....but tonight my heart is breaking because I am thinking about sending her off.  I think I have abandonment issues or something.  I hate good-bye.   Grace is in an application process for a leadership group in Buffalo.  She wrote her application, and then had a phone interview and there is more yet for her to do before she learns if she has been accepted to this "club" or not.  She told me that she spoke of our family in her interview and said that we taught her to be a risk-taker.  Really?  Really?  This teen who flew across the globe to do her junior and senior years in the US, was willing to join our family for her senio...

I remember being a teen in this town.  I remember wanting to stand for something and feel righteous about the ignorance and close-minded-ness of the adults in my community.  I get it. I loved playing the card that said that all the grown-ups are hypocrites and I knew what the real truth was...... It is part of growing up, to feel somewhat disgusted with the common opinion of your elders.  I'm all about typical child development......but hear this.  Bringing back a symbol of hatred and division will only perpetuate hatred and division. History is what it is.  We all get to interpret history in ways that mean something to us.  Lately, I have read and experienced a variety of opinions surrounding the history and meaning of the Confederate Flag.....as I watch the young adults of my community get angry and rebellious and passionate about their rights to fly this flag up and down the main street of this town.  One argument is that this flag no longer repre...

At the orphan summit I went to a workshop by Dr. Delia Pop.  She presented a program that is happening in Bosnia that is helping children stay out of orphanages, using a home visiting program.  Yep.  So cool.  In her workshop she highlighted 5 domains of well-being and I love them so much that I want to share them here.  Please consider these 5 domains in your own lives and take inventory....set goals.....or just pat yourself on the back if that is the case.   1.  Family and Social Relationships.  This is the most important domain.  Our family and social relationships define us, validate us and provide the safety net we fall into when we struggle.   2.  Living Conditions.  This has a huge impact on well-being.  The state of our home matters.  (oh nuts.  I'd better call Violetta to come clean next week.) 3.  Physical and Mental Health.   4.  Education.  Learning is power. ...

This week I attended a training for my work as a home visiting nurse.  It was a training for a new curriculum to use with families and this is how the trainer began our week, with this video.  It is worth watching. My brain is full and rather mushy on this Friday afternoon, after a 40 work week of training on the heels of an intense experience at my first orphan summit.......and that was preceeded by my little get-away to Virginia with my husband which I also have not completely unpacked yet. Enjoy this video of the backwards brain bicycle and consider the process we go through to unlearn something familiar, and work to learn something new......and then how to make that experience fit into daily living.  This video kind of sums up where I am at 5pm on this Friday in May.  More to come.....

My entire professional career I have worked hard to tell small children they were smart (rather than handsome or beautiful).....today I learned there is even higher praise and more important language......to recognize effort and not label anyone.  This video is significant.  Enjoy!

I returned home tonight from the Christian Alliance for the Orphan Summit 2016 today, around 5:00pm.  My head hurts with the weight of all I heard and experienced and learned, and yet, oddly, my heart is heavy with peace.  And faith.  Our God loves all of his children.  Even me.  Especially me.  I came home ready for chaos and a household that reflected 5 children plus one Grace and one daddy that had lived without the mama for 4 days.  Instead, I opened the door to Grace who was so, so happy to see me......and a very clean house.  Grace and Claire cleaned yesterday for me, as a Mother's Day gift.  I got all my peeps back home and it was too late to make a dinner plan so we ordered pizza. Perhaps the expectation was that I would come home from this event with a fire in me for a ministry (but I have one), or a longing to adopt (but I have done that), or a call to the orphan (which I have already responded to), or a plan to advocate for Chri...

Claire has a longing in her soul to travel, to see the world, and to make a difference.  She has for a long time.  My first trip to India, she begged to come along and it was "no"....again, with the second trip....and last winter she really wanted to go pray ahead of the super-bowl to fight spiritually against sex trafficking.....but it was "no".  This summer, she gets a "yes".  We talked earlier in spring and she said that she didn't just want her summer to be about work and sitting by the pool.  She wanted to go somewhere and do something that mattered. Sometimes, parenting means really hearing your teen daughter cry out for something more.  Sometimes, parenting means responding with every resource available.  I made lots of calls and sent a few emails, looking for trips that would feel right for her this summer....and through patience and prayer, we were able to pin down a group from our Katelyn's Fund Adoption/Orphan ministry that were goi...

This is yet another photo from our vacation last summer.  The kids have changed so much in a year!  I need to get some new photos soon but this one will suffice tonight.  I'm thinking about a few things so I hope I can find the words that God is giving me, so that I can share the ideas with you.  Parenting.  Offering.  These two.  Words that are bouncing around in my head and heart, in conversations I have had today and thoughts I am turning over and over...... Tonight, we had bible study.  A group of 5-6 couples who have tried hard to keep meeting once a month in spite of life events, busy families, etc.....and we are over a decade now of doing life together.  Praise God for this group!  We decided months ago that if Roger and I can participate in this Sunday evening event, we would need to take the 2 youngest kids along.  Life goes better for our family if Precious and Josiah are with mom and dad in the evening.  One of...