We are official!

We are officially licensed Foster Parents!! Whohoo!! We can be called at anytime now! We are so excited and can't wait to see what God has planned!

Final Homestudy: 2 thumbs up

Last Thursday we had our final home study! Everything went great and we are good to go! The only thing we are waiting on at this point is my CAN (child and neglect) clearance to come back. Micah's is already in. Our SW told us she should be calling at anytime to tell us that we are approved and there is a chance that she could be telling us about a child in the same phone call! We are so ready y'all! :)

One Year Blogiversary

One Year ago today I started this blog. We have come a long way in just one year. When I first started this blog I only shared it with my mom and brother. It's a scary thing to put your dreams and your fears out there for people to read and have opinions about. But I am so glad that I overcame that fear and let anyone who wanted to be apart of our journey to parenthood an opportunity to do so! This past year has been tough. Its been a year full of anticipation, excitement, growth, and waiting. Lots and lots of waiting. In just one year we made the decision to become foster parents, waited and waited for GPS classes to begin, started the GPS classes and finished and are now days away from being approved and open for placements. I am so excited to see what this next year holds for us. I'm sure it will have its wonderful moments and hard moments. I'm sure that we will have times of joy and contentment, uncertainty and doubt. There really is no way to know, but the one thing that I am certain of is that God is faithful and His plan is so much better than anything I can imagine. My life verse this past year has been Romans 8:28 "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose." The verse I'm claiming as mine as we start this next season is "Perhaps you were created for such a time as this." Esther 4:14

I hope you will continue to follow along in the 2nd year of our journey. 

So Close

We are thisclose to being licenced foster parents!! Woo Hoo!! We couldn't be more excited or scared if we're being honest! ;) Last week we had our last two GPS classes. Tuesday night was panel night, where we were able to invite our family to come. We ate and had a panel of different people there to answer questions. There was a foster parent, a child's social worker, and the director of DHR and the director of the child and neglect unit. We really enjoyed the night and it seemed like all of our parents got a lot out of it as well.

Then Thursday night we had our final class. We had our fingerprints done to complete our background checks and Micah had to do CPR. I'm already certified so I just watched and took pictures! :)

This Thursday is our final Home Study!! It's hard to believe we are at the end of this part or our journey. We are thrilled to begin the next part of the Journey.....to love and care for the children God has planned for us!

Us with our certificates for completing the GPS classes!

my niece :)

Early Wednesday morning right after I had gotten to work I received a text from my brother saying: "being admitted to the hospital. Baby coming today." I was in total shock....my sister in law wasn't due for 2 more weeks so this wasn't something I was expecting at all! I was thrilled. I left work early so I could work on some  papers we needed to finish to turn in to our social worker the following night, I ran to Wal-Mart to put together a container full of snacks for the new parents and as soon as Micah came home from work we picked up Mamaw and headed for B'Ham.

Hannah Frances. Born November 5th at 3:05 pm. 7lbs 3oz 19in long. She is absolutely perfect.

The new mommy. :)

The new daddy! :)

The happiest Aunt and Uncle ever. I didn't know until today that it was possible to love someone so unconditionally so fast.

Fearfully and Wonderfully Made. Psalms 139.14

Foster/Adoption Announcement

When Micah and I first started down this foster to adopt road we told each other that we were going to experience this with as much excitement that we would have if we were pregnant. We have done several things that are similar to what someone would do if they were pregnant. We prepared a room, we took pictures similar to maternity photos (minus the bump ;) ), and we decided to send out announcement's. Most people would send out birth announcements but we wanted to let our family know what we were doing before we have a child in our life. We are pretty close with most of our family but we have a large extended family that may not know that we are becoming foster parents so we thought this would be a good way to let them know. Plus it was fun & exciting for us to do! I found these cards on Vista print. They were actually pregnancy announcements and I just changed the wording! We loved that we got to add a personal message on the back.

Front

Back

The Light

Needles! Oh how I despise you!! They hurt!! Today I had to have some blood work and a TB test done for part of our medical clearance for DHR. I am a horrible patient.... I know it and I own up to it!! This process has been long and stressful but we can see the light at the end of the tunnel! Only two more weeks of classes!! Whoo Hoo!!

Foster/Adoption Pictures

As part of the process we have to make a scrapbook for the kiddos to look at before they come to live with us. It's so they have an idea of where they are going, what we look like, our home and family. I wanted to take some pictures specifically for the scrapbook and for us to keep. My brother took these and I am so happy with how they turned out especially since they were taken on my phone! Who says you need a special camera or even a professional when you've got your brother and an iPhone? :)

Home Study 1: Thumbs Up

Our 1st Home Study was this afternoon and it went great!! It was originally scheduled for last week and had to be rescheduled for today. I was so nervous last week but by the time rolled around today I wasn't really nervous. Just ready. It wasn't as scary as I thought it would be. It really wasn't scary at all. After she toured our house we sat down to talk and ended up talking for 3 hours! She asked us questions and we had an opportunity to ask any questions we had. She met Charlie and Jake and that went great as well. We never know how Jake will react to strangers but she came prepared with treats so they both loved her! We couldn't be happier to have her as our social worker she truly is a blessing and the reason we think our classes were postponed earlier this year. If that had not happened we would have had a different social worker. I'm sure they are all great but ours is special. Just more proof that God's timing truly is perfect. Now that our 1st home study is behind us we have 3 weeks left in our GPS classes and one more home study! Then we will be ready for placements! 

This Week

I ordered this necklace about a month ago from Zulily and it finally came in this week! I absolutely love it and what it represents. I wanted to have it say foster to adopt but I was only aloud so many letters so I went with adopting and our initials on the oval.

Also this week the hubby and I celebrated 9 years of marriage! It was pretty low key since we were up to our eyeballs getting ready for our home study. We had dinner and Micah surprised me with a beautiful cross ring for my right hand! It was completely unexpected and I love it! Every year on our anniversary I always reflect on the past years we have spent together and I really feel like this past year has been one of growth. We have grown stronger and closer. I am truly blessed to be able spend my life with him and I thank God every day for putting us together. I have this feeling that this next year is going to be one of our best! I can't wait to see what God has in store for us!

Reschedule

Unfortunately our home study is being rescheduled. Our social worker had something come up and was unable to make it. Thus the life of DHR. On the bright side our house is super clean! We are choosing to remain positive even though we were disappointed because there are simply things in life that we can't control. Like my button on the side says "Find Joy in the Journey Now."

The Final Countdown

It's the night before our home study and I "think" we are ready....at least we are as ready as we are going to be! I was fortunate to be off work most this week so I have had time to really deep clean everything. I know that our social worker won't be checking the dust on my baseboards with white gloves but I feel better knowing they are dust free! I will update about how our home study goes. Wish us luck!!

Why?

We are nearing the half way mark with our GPS classes and we have our 1st home study scheduled for October 10th. While I won't go into a lot of detail about our classes I will tell you that they have been eye opening. They have caused us to really examine our reason for pursuing our dream of parenting in this way. That reason is Jesus and all the hurting kids that are out there.

JESUS....because without His love for us we wouldn't have the capability to open our hearts to love a child that ultimately may not get to stay with us forever.

THE KIDS....because once you have heard the stories of what these precious children go through there is no way we can turn our back on them.

So even though we are putting our hearts at risk of being broken we will do this. What these kids have endured is so much bigger than us. We feel blessed that God has called us to be a part of this battle with Him. Because it is a battle. We will fight to pour God's love, our love and restoration into their lives.

"Do not be afraid or discouraged....for the battle is not yours, but God's." 2Chronicles 20:15

The Nesting and Preparing Continues...

Our 1st Home Study is scheduled for October 10th so we have been super busy getting everything ready. The kiddo(s) bathroom was next on the list of things to get done. Below are pictures! 

I am obsessed with this room!! It turned out even cuter than I hoped for! Unfortunately my iphone does not capture the true color of the walls. I had the same problem with the bedroom pictures. I think it may be the lighting in the rooms. My favorite part of the room is the quote on the wall "Wash your hands and say your prayers because Jesus and Germs are everywhere." My mom had this designed and made for me and I absolutely love it! (Its actually navy and not black!)

Tomorrow night is our 3rd out of 10 GPS classes. I will do a post soon about how those are going. But I will ask that ya'll continue to pray for us. We know in our hearts that we are traveling a path that God has set for us but there are moments when emotions take over.

"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous, do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go." Joshua 1:9

Foster Care/Adoption is not the trendy thing to do....

Earlier this week a friend of mine who is also an adoptive mama to a precious baby girl posted a link on Facebook to a post about how adoption is not a trend. Apparently there is the idea of "adoption is now the trendy thing to do" floating around social media. I have personally not seen this yet so was shocked when I read the post of an adoptive dad defending that it is indeed not a trend. Since reading this I have thought a lot about it and want to give my opinion on whether or not adoption has become a trend or not.

You can probably guess what I'm about to say but Ill say it anyway. Adoption/Foster Care is absolutely not a trend. I do think some may go to a meeting about it or call an agency requesting more info about it because they know someone who is currently going through it, but if they themselves choose to Foster/Adopt that has nothing to do with a trend.

Why do I think that?

Well, no one would ever open up every single aspect of their lives and home for inspection for a trend. Its weird and down right uncomfortable. They would not spend hours filling out paper work for a trend. Its stressful and not fun at all.If they are adopting an infant through an agency or a child from another country they do not spend months and maybe years waiting for their child for a trend. If they are going the route of Foster to Adopt they would not spend hours a week in a class room with homework for a trend. They would not have moments where a paralyzing fear grips their hearts wondering where their child is, what is happening to them, are they hungry, are they scared? They don't pray the prayer of "God please keep my child safe." Knowing the irony of it is that in order for that child to come into their life they are not safe in their current situation but you pray it anyways because you trust your God. Which leads me to if its not a trend then why are so many people doing it?

I believe that people everywhere are rising up and answering God's call to care for these children. It's that simple. The journey God sends us on to come to this point is different for everyone but the reason is the same. You love children and want to give them the best life possible.

Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed. Psalm 82:3 

Nesting for the Foster/Adoptive Mama

We have been busy getting things ready for our future kiddo(s). We have given Charlie & Jake the boot out of the spare bedroom, painted and have started decorating. I can't begin to tell you how much fun it has been to prepare a space for our child. We have waited a very long time to do this and it has been as wonderful as I always imagined it to be. Below are some pictures of the room. I still have some touches I want to add but this gives you the general idea.

We are pretty happy with the way it has turned out. Next we are going to paint and redecorate their bathroom. Having their room ready has made this seem all the more real. Just today I looked at Micah and told him "I'm ready for our child to come home." I have to confess that this is so exciting for us but can also have its emotional moments as well. Today I had one of those moments. This Tuesday night is our orientation for our GPS classes and then September 9th is our 1st official class. Please be in prayer for us as we start this part of our journey and continue to ready our home for our future child.

Memorization Monday: Jeremiah 1:5

When you read this weeks verse you may think to yourself ummm....I've known this verse forever. It's a verse we see pretty often especially in reference to new babies. But I think its important to think about what this verse means to us as adults and the season of life we are in right now. This weeks verse is:

"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart." Jeremiah 1:5

The fact that God knew me before I was even created is so amazing to me. He knew me before my own mother knew I was ever going to exist. I think that's pretty special. I also think its pretty special that for a moment in time the only two people that knew of my existence was God and my mother.

 Sometimes in life as an adult we get caught up in doing life. We are working, caring for children, husbands, furbabies ;) and endless list of things that sometimes we may feel like who is caring for us? That's where I think this verse can be so vital to our lives. This verse reminds us that God cares. He always has...He loved us way before anyone even knew to expect our arrival here on earth. He also set us apart. We were created for a purpose. Before we were born God already knew His plan for our life. Sometimes we may be unsure of what that plan is and that's another way this verse can help us. It reminds us that even when we are unsure of the plan God never is. We just have to trust in Him and He will show us the way.

*Memorization Tip*: Say this verse out loud every time your in your car!

* In your prayer time thank God for setting you apart before you were even born. If your not sure of your purpose right now ask God to show you. * 

Memorization Monday : James 1:19-20

Every time I start to think that I've finally got it all together God always shows me just how wrong I am. I am thankful for this because I will never reach the day that I don't need the love and forgiveness of my Savior and for Him to show me the areas in my life that need improvement. I believe He does this because of His great love for us. Like the new Casting Crown's song says: We are meant to thrive. Not just survive. I am ashamed  to admit that one of those areas that we (me & Jesus) are working on right now is my temper. Let's just say that I can be a tad bit hot headed. Enough said. He has shown me that this is a sin and that is why I picked the following verse to memorize this week.

"Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires." James 1:19-20

God desires for us to live a righteous life. I want this. I can only get there with the loving help of my Jesus.

*Memorization Tip* : Read it 10 times. Write it 10 times. Say it 10 times.

*A Challenge* : Think of 5 ways the Lord has blessed you and write these on a note card. Carry this with you this week and at anytime you start to feel a little angry/upset pull it out and read those blessings until that moment passes!

Not a means to an end.

Over the past several years that word got out that we were wanting to adopt a common theme began to develop. Very frequently and even just this week I'm told "Oh, once you adopt you'll get pregnant." or "We started that/did that but then I found out I was pregnant." While I know these people mean well this always feels like a punch to the gut. I want so badly to say " that's not why we are doing this." But that would be rude because I don't believe they mean it to come out as flippant as it sounds to my ears and I realize that I am sensitive to the subject. What I really want people to know is that yes we want to be parents. Always have. Before we were married we would have long conversations naming our future kids and daydreaming about what it would be like to have babies. 8 years into this journey our desires have shifted. Yes we still want to be parents but its a little different. Since we felt like God was leading us towards foster care our idea of parenting has changed a bit. Our eyes and our hearts have been opened to adopting an older child. We no longer feel like we have to parent a child from infancy. Our desire with becoming foster parents is ultimately to adopt but we also know that there is a chance that this may not happen. God has a plan and we have no idea how that is going to play out. The amazing thing is how he has changed our hearts. Just last night Micah told me that Gods plan may be for us to always be foster parents and never to adopt. That maybe we will just be a moment in a child's life but a moment that we provide all the love that we have to give. I have to admit that this scares me because I want to adopt. I want forever. But this is not about me. This is about the child/children that God has already planned to come into my life and what they need. 

Memorization Monday: Proverbs 31:26

This weeks verse comes from Proverbs 31 the description of a wife of noble character. This verse causes me to pause and think. Think about the things I say. The things I say when I'm busy and stressed or just plain frustrated with a situation. The things I say when I don't agree with someone or how something is being handled. How often do we think before we speak? When we don't we have regret over words we wish we could take back. Our words hold power. Power to bring someone up and bring someone down. The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman is a great book and I highly recommend it if you haven't read it. After reading this book and taking the quiz I learned that my primary love language is "words of affirmation". I'm super sensitive to words that are spoken to me and at the same time words that are left unsaid. While I may be sensitive to this I still need help with keeping my mouth shut at times. This is something I need God to help me with. To teach me there is honor in keeping my lips sealed. To not talk unless my words are for the good and lift someone up. I realize that there are times that we will have to say unpleasant things but I also think that with Gods help He will help us to be graceful when those situations arise. This weeks verse is:

"She opens her mouth with wisdom and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue." Proverbs 31:26

*Memorization Tip* Tape this verse to you bathroom mirror. Say it out loud while you are getting ready for the day and remember that true beauty comes from Jesus that shines from within us.

*A Challenge* Go out of your way this week to say something kind to someone. Be intentional about this!

So Excited.....We just can't hide it!

On my way home from work today the hubby called and was so excited to tell me that we had recieved a letter in the mail from DHR. Our GPS classes are officially scheduled! We will start September 9th! The classes will last 10 weeks and God willing at the end of those 10 weeks we will be ready to welcome a child into our hearts and our home. We are so excited to start this part of the journey that God set us on almost a year ago! 

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called  according to His purpose."  Romans 8:28

Memorization Monday: Matthew 6:27

Happy Monday!! So often Mondays are not what we would refer to as happy. Sundays are such good days spent worshiping God with fellow believers. I always feel light and happy on Sundays. Enter Monday morning. Mondays bring work, bills to be paid, tasks to complete, stress. Gods word is full of verses telling us not to be anxious, to worry for nothing. I fail at this everyday. How do we overcome this? We hide his words deep in our hearts. This weeks verse is:

"Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?" Matthew 6:27

Those are Jesus's words friends. I don't know about y'all but every time I read this verse I feel convicted. Jesus told us not to worry. Why? Because He is with us always. He has a plan for our lives, even those crazy Mondays.

*Memorization Tip*  Tape it to your refrigerator door & say it out loud every time you open the fridge this week!

Memorization Monday Psalm 18:2

In Sunday School we have been studying wisdom. What is wisdom and where does it come from?  Are we following God's wisdom or that of someone else? How do we know that the "wise words" we are hearing are from God or our own idea of how life should go? Well one way to know God better is to know his words and I believe with my whole heart that the better we know him the easier it will be to know when it is HIS wisdom we are hearing. So what better way to know His words them to hide them in our hearts! This weeks verse is:

"The LORD is my rock, my fortress, my deliverer, my GOD, my stronghold in whom I take refuge, my shield, the glory of my salvation, and my high tower." Psalm 18:2

I love this verse and am so excited to commit it to memory. Psalm 18:2 states the many roles that God plays in our lives. He is so complex and just BIG! There is no area of our lives that He can't touch and that is so amazing and such a comfort to me and I hope that it is to you as well!

*Memorization Tip* Write this verse down then repeat 20 times! Once you have memorized this verse try saying it out loud replacing every "my" with "your name"! Jesus loves you my friends and He is all of this to you and more. He wants you to know it and believe it! 

*A Challenge*  I believe that God sometimes will bring to your mind someones name. It may seem totally random because this person may not be someone you interact with on a regular basis but I don't think that its random at all. If this happens to you this week, stop and pray for this person, send them a text or drop a note of encouragement in the mail. You never know when someone just needs an encouraging word but God does. Let's be an encouragement this week to someone and show the Love of Jesus! :)

Memorization Monday Joshua 1:9

Memorization Monday's : Every week I am committing myself to memorizing a new verse from the bible. I hope you will join me! This weeks verse is:

"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go." Joshua 1:9

I love the part "Have I not commanded you?" What a beautiful reminder from God. HE commanded us to be strong and brave because HE is always with us! I don't know about you but I am so excited to hide these words from God in my heart. So often the enemy uses fear (of anything and everything) to distract us from the truth of God. This verse will help us to fight back when fear and doubt start to creep in.

*Memorization Tip* Write this verse on note cards. Tape one to your bathroom mirror. Leave one in your console of your car.

Memorization Monday (Even though its Friday)

I have been reading Crash The Chatterbox by Steven Furtick and it has made me realize just how important scripture memorization is. Psalms 119:11 says "I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you." Satan loves to get in our heads and trick us into believing his lies. Everyone is different so the lies he uses are different for each of us. But his goal is the same. To pull us out of fellowship with our God. Crash the Chatterbox is all about learning how to fight back. The best way to do this is to hide Gods word in our hearts. So when the enemy starts to confuse us with his lies we can fight back with the truth of Jesus. Let me tell you a secret about me. I am horrible at remembering stuff. Peoples names(so embarrassing), a specific ingredient at the grocery store, a bill(eek!), something the hubby asked me to do for him, and the list goes on. So memorizing bible verses has never been very easy to me. I always am impressed by people who can pull out scripture at the drop of a hat! Several things has happened lately that has made me feel that God is saying "Ashley, remember my words!" I started reading Crash the Chatterbox, #SheReadsTruth has days that are only a verse to memorize, and last week a devotional was about this same topic. So I'm going to do it. I'm going to pick a verse a week to memorize and since we are not meant to do life alone I am going to start "Memorization Monday"!

Every Monday I will post a new verse from the bible to memorize that week! I hope that you will join me in Memorization Monday and we can work together to hide God's word in our hearts!

Not Bitter....Joy.

Naomi could not see past her circumstances. The hand was dealt, the credits were rolling. Naomi believed with her head that her God was sovereign, but she was too soul-weary to believe with her heart. And so she calls it. Game over. Name changed…  She couldn’t imagine the bitterness becoming beauty, but her sovereign God could….

We are not named by our circumstances. We are named by our good God.

Is there a discrepancy between the names by which Jesus calls you and the names you give yourself? Are there circumstances in your life to which you are giving undue power, power that rightfully—and in reality!—belongs to our sovereign God alone?  Sister, who names you today—your God or your circumstances? 

My friend Courtney recommended the #shereadstruth bible study and I'm so glad that she did! I dove head first into the Ruth study. I have studied Ruth before and honestly thought "I know Ruth." But God always has something new to teach us doesn't He? This study has been such a blessing and came at absolute perfect timing. The above paragraphs are from today's devotional.

These past few weeks I have felt connected to Naomi. The circumstances are different but the feelings are the same. I am in a good place now but there was a time that I too could have changed my name to bitter. Infertility is in a simple phrase....just plain awful. It sucks. Sorry but that's just the best word for it. It is the craziest roller coaster that you will ever ride. I spent the first several years alot like Naomi. Naomi believed with her head that her God was sovereign, but she was too soul-weary to believe with her heart.   I can look back and see that God was always there. He never left me. My Heart did finally catch up to what I knew to be true. My circumstances do not define who I am. God defines who I am. He knows every hair on my head and holds every tear is his hand. His love for me is far more than anything I can even try to imagine and he has never once left me alone in this journey. I remember the day I finally laid it all at his feet. I say finally because this was hard. Friends would tell me give it all to God. I didn't know how! I wanted to so badly but just couldn't. I prayed that He would help me do this and He did. I will never forget that day and how it felt to kneel before Him and pour it all out. When I rose I knew that I had finally given up my control and gave it to the only one who had the control in the first place. Micah and I since decided to become foster parents and though we are once again waiting I wait with joy in my heart. There are moments that my heart still hurts but I know God has a beautiful plan in place and I will praise Him in our journey. 

Info on Foster Care

Adopting From Foster Care - What Is It Really Like  A friend who is actually living this out right now shared this article on Facebook this week. While we are waiting to hear from DHR I spend alot of time reading articles like this one about foster care. It helps me feel active in this season of waiting. So if you know someone who are foster parents or are thinking about becoming one yourself this is a great article to read!

We should be getting a letter in the mail from DHR about our upcoming GPS classes soon. So I will be starting what I like to call "Stalk the Mailbox". Be on the look out for a post about our GPS classes! 

Summer Reading List 2014

I have always been a book worm. Before we decided to become foster parents I could read several books in one week. Since we made this decision it seems like there has been roadblock after roadblock. I ran across a quote recently that really spoke to my heart concerning this: "When God is up to something big, Satan will use whatever and whomever to prevent it from happening." This was shared on facebook and it came at the perfect time when I needed to be encouraged to press on in this journey. I haven't been reading as much (almost not at all) since last November. So I have decided to make a summer reading list that will hopefully help me get back to doing something that I enjoy so much. The following is my list.

Seven by Jen Hatmaker  I recently posted about this book. I am still reading this book and yes it is still wrecking me. 

Paper Towns by John Green  I am really looking forward to this book. I read The Fault in Our Stars another one of John Green's books and it was so good. It made me cry the ugly cry.

Bridge to Haven by Francine Rivers I love all of Francine Rivers books. She has this amazing ability of weaving together scripture and how it applies to our life in a fictional story that grabs hold of you and doesn't let go.

The Outlander Series by Diana Gabaldon If you like historical fiction and fantasy then this series is for you. I have actually read the first three books. I just never finished and she has recently came out with another book. A television network is also turning the first book into a television show so I am wanting to go back and try to finish reading it.

The Princess by Lori Wick Lori Wick is one of my favorite christian authors. I first read The Princess several years ago and it immediately became one of my "yearly reads". I love this book. I highly recommend reading it if you never had. Especially if your a girl and happen to love princesses! 

You may notice that this is a pretty short list for someone who used to read up to 4 books a week. It is. I want to get back to reading more but just not quite that much! What is your Summer Reading List?

Seven

Seven by Jen Hatmaker. This book has wrecked me.

Most of you have probably at least heard about this book. If not its about how the author Jen Hatmaker took 7 months, identified seven areas of excess, and made seven simple choices to fight back against the modern- day diseases of greed, materialism, and overindulgence.

7 areas of excess: food, clothes, possessions, media, waste, spending, stress.

 I have avoided the book like the plague for the last 2 years since I saw it advertised in my Lifeway mail out. I thought to myself : NOWAY am I reading that book. That girl is crazy. But being my sweet self I told a friend that I thought SHE should read it. I know, I know. I'm the best kind of friend.  I thought I'm good. I don't have a problem with excess. I appreciate what I have. I'm good. Well apparently God thought otherwise. Every time I saw this book in the store I literally had to get away from it as fast as I could. It's like it was taunting me. In the past couple of months the hubby & I (mostly the hubby) have been talking about having a simpler life. How we don't need all the excess and we should be happy with what we have. Mind you at this point I am still in the mindset of "I'm good." But I have to agree with him that a simple life sounds good compared to what feels like the crazy life that we live. In the past few weeks its like this book has been every where for some reason. On facebook,  a friends book list, a picture of a friend reading this very book, until finally I broke. I thought to myself...Ok. Ok. I will read the book. I downloaded a sample and was instantly hooked. This girl IS crazy but in a makes you want to be crazy too kinda way. I immediately when to my local book store and bought the paper back version because I'm a nerd and wanted to be able to highlight and write in the book. I have only finished chapter one and I am wrecked. Yes I am wrecked but in a way that only God can wreck you. I felt I should share this in case any of you wanted to be wrecked too. I will keep you updated as I read through the rest of the book.

Why Blog?

I have been reading blogs for about 4 years now. It has always been amazing to me how people basically bare their souls for the entire world to read. I am the type of person who loves to know things. I research everything and I mean everything. When the hubby and I started to think about adoption I turned to google and the blog world. I found oodles of insightful info. I feel like websites you can find on foster care/adoption (or any topic you desire) is more politically correct facts on the topic. But blogs are real life stories. What its like day in and day out, the good, the bad, the ugly, the joyful. When we went to our GPS orientation I felt like I knew everything there was to know that was available to me at that time. So it blew my google/blog lovin mind when the majority of the people there admitted to not knowing much about foster care and adoption. To me the more I know the more confident I feel. So reading blogs these past few years led me to wanting to start my own. Years ago when Micah and I realized that becoming parents was not going to come easy to us we made a decision to keep God in this and to give Him the glory as we travel this bumpy road. We wanted God to use our story to help other people in the same place if He saw fit. Its not always easy to talk about. Its painful and uncomfortable at times but it is also exciting to see God work in this season of our lives. I also wanted to document this journey and I don't scrapbook and have never been good at keeping a journal. So far not much has happened to blog about so I may sometimes just blog about our life. I plan to blog more regularly once our GPS classes start. 

Charlie & Jake

I've realized that I haven't blogged about my fur-babies....AT ALL!! Shame on me. This is Charlie & Jake:

Charlie is our Basset Hound. He will be 8 years old in October. He was born one week after our 1st anniversary. So he has been apart of our family for almost our entire marriage. He is absolutely spoiled rotten and its 100% my fault!! He has the funniest personality!  Until Jake he refused to drink out of a water bowl, he wanted it straight from the bathtub faucet and he prefers to nap completely covered with a blanket. He is a sleepy head and sometimes I don't even see him in the mornings before I leave for work. I just rest my hand on the mountain of blankets to make sure hes still breathing under there!! He definitely keeps us on our toes!

Jake has been in our family for a year. One day I decided that Charlie was "lonely" and he needed a friend to "keep him young"! This time I really wanted to rescue instead of finding a breeder. I searched our local animal shelter's website and found our Jake. He was called Bagel at the time(we changed that asap). It was a rough go at first when we brought Jake home. He was 5 months old when he got him and he had been owner surrendered to the animal shelter at 3 months old. We believe that he had been abused during his first 3 months. He suffered from extreme separation anxiety and was extremely fearful of Micah. To be honest at first I wasn't sure how it was going to work out. But we refused to give up on him. It took a good 5 months with us before he started to be comfortable with us and now a year later its like he always been here. We cant imagine not having him. Jake and Charlie are the best of friends. Jake is extremely loyal  and loving. He now is so excited for "daddy" to come home everyday .....a big change from growling at him every day a year ago!! 

Updates

So, I have pretty much disappeared for about 3 months. Sorry. Last time I updated we had just had our orientation for our GPS classes. At the orientation they moved the start date for our classes about a month out. Then the Friday before our classes were supposed to officially start (again) I received a phone call. Apparently one of the ladies teaching the classes had changed jobs so the classes will be put off again. As of today they have hired someone and hope to start classes in August. Thanks to my husband to making several phone calls to DHR to ask questions about when they would hire someone and start the classes. Without him I would have went crazy...I wanted to know the info but didn't want to call. I do not like confrontation of any kind and was afraid I would become upset with their lack of concern. What bothers me most about this mess is all the kids that need a home. Where is the concern for them? You always hear how foster families are needed because their are more kids than families. I just don't get it and to be honest it has made me so angry on their behalf. This has made me a little afraid of what working with the state is going to be like. I feel like we have been pulled back in forth like crazy and we haven't even had a class yet!! I have to remind myself daily that my God is the same God today as He was yesterday. He never changes. My life may give me whiplash sometimes but He is always there by my side and sometimes with me in His arms never changing. He knows how all this is going to look like in the end and I have to have trust in that. And in addition to that any child that needs me is worth all the back and forth we have to go through. 

GPS classes and a Kitchen Remodel

Tuesday night we attended orientation for our GPS classes. I was so nervous about going but it was great! The two ladies teaching the classes were so sweet and laid back. There were about 8 other couples and 2 single ladies. It was very interesting to hear the different reasons they were all there. Our official classes were scheduled to start next Tuesday night but they had to change the start date to April 1st. At first I was disappointed but then I felt relieved. Right now we are in the middle of a complete remodel of our kitchen. About a month ago we had below freezing temps in Alabama and we had a pipe to burst and ruin our wood floors in the kitchen. So we have gutted everything and are starting over. So if the classes would have started next week I would have been looking at our 1st homestudy in 3 weeks and no way would I have been ready!! So I have plenty of time now. I honestly believe that God has His hand on all of this even down to the smallest detail and that He knew I would have probably had a complete meltdown from the stress! Remodeling a kitchen is ALOT more stressful than I ever thought it would be. Have you ever seen Property Brothers? The people would choose to live in the home during renovations and then whine about it. I always thought they were such babies! HA! I am singing a different tune now! This is tough stuff! My house is a nightmare, I have bins full of my kitchen stuff in the dinning room and my OCD is out of control! Not to mention the decisions you have to make. I am a very indecisive person (just ask Micah) and this has been so hard for me. I want to make the right choice and am scared Ill regret it. Paint is an easy fix but tile, counter tops, and back splash not so much. I am embarrassed to admit I had a baby meltdown in Lowes the other night in the back-splash isle. But the floor is down and it looks beautiful! So hopefully by the end of next week we will have a kitchen again! So in the mean time I am filling out mountains of paper work for DHR. Exciting stuff happening around here!!

Finally!!

Valentine's weekend Micah and I went away for a much needed relaxing get away! Micah planned for us to go to dinner and reserved a suite at a very nice hotel in a nearby town! When we got back home we found that a letter had come from DHR!! We are so excited! We have orientation this Tuesday and our GPS classes start March 4th!! Finally!! I am a pretty impatient person so waiting these past few months has been pretty tough but it's all getting stared now & I can't wait to see how God will work through these next 10 weeks!

A little Update

Not much has happened. I called DHR and found out that our classes will begin sometime in March and that we will be receiving a letter in the mail. We are still very excited to begin this process but I have to be honest and say the waiting is hard. VERY hard. We are so ready and being on someone else's timeline can be tough. With that being said we have done a few things. We have bought a tool box that we can lock for our meds!! WOO HOO!! Never thought I would be so excited about a tool box! HAHA!! We have also purchased a twin sized quilt for the bedroom (I've roughly decided on the look I want for the kiddos room...thanks pinterest!). I have also started buying plug covers for all of our outlets!! 

I have to say that through all this I have been shown over and over that this is Gods plan for our family. The past 8 years have been tough but we are starting to see that HE has had His hands all over the past 8 years preparing our hearts.  He has also put people in our lives that have been so supportive and excited for us. I love getting to look back and see how God doesn't leave one detail out of His plan! We are so blessed!

This is the quilt & a pillow we picked up at T.J. Maxx. We are going to not do a theme since we only have 1 extra bedroom and we will need to have a twin and a crib in there. Instead we are going to use different colors and patterns. Grey, yellow, turquoise, and red!

This is the tool box!!

And....the outlet covers. These make me so happy when I see them....they scream K.I.D.S.!!

Hopefully we will have more updates soon!!