Noah and Kaleb

Here is Noah's interview:

1. What is something your mom always says to you?

"I love you."

2. What makes mom happy?

"A clean house."

3. What makes mom sad?

"When we disobey. I was about to say a dirty house, but that's mad, not sad."

4. How does your mom make you laugh?

"When she miss says things and tells jokes."

5. What was your mom like as a child?

"I don't know, are you kidding me who knows what their mom was like as a child?" Apparently I should open up more about my childhood.

6. How old is your mom?

"Um, I thought, are you 32 or 30? Daddy is 34 so that would make you 30. How old is daddy mom?"

7. How tall is your mom?

"Um" insert laughter "Um, 5'2, no there is no way your 5'2, I don't know, why don't we measure you right now."

8. What is her favorite thing to do?

"Stay home with her children, or go places with her children."

9. What does your mom do when you're not around?

"Do stuff on the computer, and maybe read a little."

10. What is your mom really good at?

"Mothering, teaching, cooking" "Oh, she is good at cleaning the house, type that in there too."

11. What is your mom not very good at?

"I am sure she is not very good at surfing. Of course we don't surf, so daddy's not any good at it either. I just don't know how you keep your balance on that board."

12. What does your mom do for her job?

"Um, stay home and take care of children."

13. What is your mom's favorite food?

"Soup"

14. What makes you proud of your mom?

"A lot of things. She is here with us all the time instead of working like other moms. She likes children, of course that is obvious."

15. What do you and your mom do together?

"School, we do Bible studies together."

16. How are you and your mom different?

"Um, she's 31 and I am 11 she's a girl I'm a boy and she is taller than I am."

17. How do you know your mom loves you?

"Because she punishes me when I do wrong things, and she tells me she loves me all the time."


Last but not least, Kaleb's interview.

1. What is something your mom always says to you?

"Stop saying ya know what I'm sayin'"

2. What makes mom happy?

"A clean house and not having to watch the democratic convention when she goes to work out."

3. What makes mom sad?

"Her own sinful state, and mine."

4. How does your mom make you laugh?

"With her humor, her smile, and how passionate she is about some things."

5. What was your mom like as a child?

"Spoiled and depraved"

6. How old is your mom?

"30-something"

7. How tall is your mom?

"About 5 and 1/2 feet." He only knows this, because he knows his own height...the same as mine.

8. What is her favorite thing to do?

"Spend time with her family."

9. What does your mom do when you're not around?

"Go shopping, date her husband, and occasionally spend time with her girlfriends."

10. What is your mom really good at?

"Getting her point across."

11. What is your mom not very good at?

"What did Noah put?" Uncontrollable laughter "My brother has a point, she is probably not very good at surfing. She is also not very good at rock climbing. In fact she would never even attempt it." Yep, he has that right.

12. What does your mom do for her job?

"She is a homemaker."

13. What is your mom's favorite food?

"ANY kind of Soup" OK, for the record I love soup, but tacos are my favorite food. (HTML edited by the interviewee)

14. What makes you proud of your mom?

"Her dulocity." laughing "Half the people who read that are not going to know what it means, so put in parenthesis, her servants heart." Half the people? Only the people at our home meeting last night will know what it means.

15. What do you and your mom do together?

"Talk and look at third party candidates."

16. How are you and your mom different?

"Well there are many ways that we different, but I think the biggest difference is that I am a little bit weirder."

17. How do you know your mom loves you?

"Through her actions, ya know what I'm sayin'?"

Interview With a Six Year Old

So I got this interview thing from another blog (who can be found here). Thought it was to fun. I have done a similar thing before, if you really want to get into your kids mind ask them questions like these. Once I asked my boys the question "What is the difference between marriage in real life and on TV?" Noah, blushing and giggling said "There is WAY more kissing in real life." So that tells you quite a bit about our home life...obviously they don't see much TV, and my beloved and I do kiss a bunch. So anyway, here is Grace's interview about...me.

1. What is something your mom always says to you?

"Pick up your mess."

2. What makes mom happy?

"Having a clean house"

3. What makes mom sad?

"The house being dirty, like a pig style" Seeing a pattern here? Yes, she did say style. She has a language all her own, instead of hello she says "Hi Lo"

4. How does your mom make you laugh?

"By doing funny things." Apparently things like this make her laugh too, because she laughed the entire time. I'm so funny.

5. What was your mom like as a child?

"I don't know, I wasn't born yet"

6. How old is your mom?

"Um, how old are you?"

7. How tall is your mom?

"Two feet" Close, but not quite.

8. What is her favorite thing to do?

"Read."

9. What does your mom do when you're not around?

"Read"

10. What is your mom really good at?

"Cooking"

11. What is your mom not very good at?

"Um, Um, going to sleep. Cause there is really nothing you are not good at, except sleeping." HUH????

12. What does your mom do for her job?

"Teaches us"

13. What is your mom's favorite food?

"Soup"

14. What makes you proud of your mom?

"That she's my mom"

15. What do you and your mom do together?

"cook"

16. How are you and your mom different?

"She's big and I am little, but that is not the only thing"

17. How do you know your mom loves you?

"She takes care of me."

She knows me pretty well, except for the sleep thing. Trust me, I am VERY good at sleeping.

I am working on a gotcha day post. I have a problem though. We left our camera with the gotcha day pictures in Uganda (I KNOW!!!!) and I have yet to get it back. I am supposed to, but.... Anyway, I do have a good video, so I am trying to have my resident techie (Kaleb) transfer it, edit it, and all that jazz so I can post. Hopefully I will be able to soon. I am so anal that I can't get out of order, so no more adoption posts until I can bring my self to do it with our pictures or we get the video done:)

More interviews to come.

Accosted At the Food Court

That title got your attention huh? Rest assured it is not what you think, just an over stimulating guilt producing experience in Uganda.

So here we are in beautiful Kampala Uganda, we have made our stop over at our lawyer's office and have taken care of business. We are tired, stinky, anxious, and hungry. So our faithful driver, William, takes us to Garden City for a bite to eat. Garden city is mall, like a real mall, in Kampala. I personally believe this place exists solely for tourists. It was so expensive, I couldn't even afford to shop there. Most of the people we saw there were either clearly foreigners or locals with foreigners. Although they did have two things going for them. A decent food court and an AWESOME coffee shop. This is where we spent many an afternoon, while waiting for someone to come pick us up and bring us back to the guest house. It would have been horrible, were it not for that coffee.

Anyway, so William takes up to the food court. This is a pretty spectacular place, with various choices of ethnic cuisine. Italian, Chinese, Indian, American....you got a hankering for food from your homeland, you can probably find it here. Not to mention is has a wonderful view. It is on the second floor, overlooking lush green grass and gorgeous trees. I am starved but hoping this isn't going to take too long, because I am beyond ready to get to Jinja. This would be my first experience in Uganda, teaching me that in Uganda, there is no such thing as something that doesn't take too long:) So we, being the Americans that we are proceed to walk up to the counter we want to order from. William quickly tells us to have a seat. All rightly then. We pick a table and have a seat. IMMEDIATELY we are accosted with waiters and menus from every restaurant in the place. All of them standing over us, pointing out the various and yummy fares on their menus. There they all stood over us, five or six people, waiting for us to decide what we wanted. Each of them trying to convince us to order from them. Now under normal circumstances I have a difficult time deciding what to eat. Under these it was nearly impossible. I knew what I wanted, but dare I say and send the others away with out an order? How could I? I didn't want them to think I thought their food was ant less appetizing. Should we order something from each of them...that would make it easier right? Finally I whispered to my faithful beloved "I want Chinese, order for me, I have to go pee." Whew, got out of that one by the skin of my teeth. This is how it was each time we ate there, but after that I was prepared. By the time we left Uganda, I was able to say to them "I will be having Chinese today."

Over an hour later we were full and on our way to Jinja. We asked how long it took to get from Kampala to Jinja. "It depends" was the reply we got. We soon found out it could take about an hour and a half, or well over three hours. This trip, in the afternoon when traffic was at it's worst...well over three hours. It seemed like an eternity. It didn't matter though, every mile brought us closer to meeting our children. I have never been so excited and panic stricken in my life. What on earth do you say to children, that are yours, that you have never met before? Do I hug and kiss them or will that over whelm them? If I cry will that freak them out? How on earth am I NOT going to cry? I did the only thing I could do, I prayed for grace.

Wordless Wednesday

Our Day at Court

It's official. On August 7, 2008 our Uganda darlings officially became ours. Of course I think they have been ours since we first told Mandy they were the ones. Then again if you ask my beloved, he will tell you that they have been ours from the foundation of the world(crazy Calvinists). We had a very fine afternoon in San Antonio. I must say that this was indeed a refreshing step in this process. Our lawyer, Jana Baker, was awesome. She brought snacks and toys for the children. You could tell she adores her job. If you live in Texas, within a four hour radius of San Antonio, I highly recommend her. The judge was wonderful. He was um... so much different than what we have been accustomed to. He said, "It is so good to create families, instead of tearing them apart for a change." We celebrated afterward at our favorite place, Chick-Fil-A. Yep, even Ugandans LOVE Chick-Fil-A. So with out further ado, some pictures for your looking enjoyment.




Me and my beloved. Man do I love this guy. Hear that honey? I love you, and I am not ashamed to tell the world. Thanks for traveling around the world with me to make these two a part of our family. Thank you for working so hard, so that we could afford to make them apart of our family. Thank you for being so patient with me. Thank you for being such a great father, and loving your children so wonderfully. I couldn't ask for a better man to lead us. (yeah, yeah, I know...you are just a rotten punk, totally depraved, all the good in you is the Lord's doing. I know, I thank Him too :)




Our little family, minus one. Hey, someone had to take the picture. Thanks Kaleb!






Noah, smothering our sweet princess with kisses. This is a common sight at our house. Someone is always getting kissed. This girl is a charmer, and she is so sweet and as stubborn as they come. Although she has finally met her match. Someone who can out wit her and out wait her. ME! She has made leaps and bounds since that first fit in Uganda. We simply told her "no" and she preceded to scream (a VERY high pitched scream) for 45 minutes. Then it happened again, in traffic. One could have easily gone mad :) She has been transformed in to a obedient (ok, most the time) little girl. She knows the rules, and wants to follow them. Although, like every other child under the sun, every once in a while she checks to see if they still stand. We haven't quite figured out a nick name for her yet. We have tried a few on for size, but none have stuck. She is a beauty, her smile lights up the room. I am excited to watch her turn into a young lady, who loves the Lord.




William looking quite smart, in his yellow shirt. Isn't he cute? Every time I look at him I break out in huge grin. I would spend my day squeezing him, if I didn't have so many pressing obligations (dishes, laundry, cooking, you know all that stuff called life). Hence he has received the nickname "Squishy". He is my squishy, and I love him...and I will squish him :)

Welcome to Uganda

After traveling for over thirty-four hours, I hear the pilot say "Ladies and gentleman, blah blah blah blah, we will be arriving at our destination, Kampala Uganda, in approximately 20 minutes. The following was my thought process, "What 20 minutes, you've got to be kidding me? That seems like an eternity, I need to have my feet on the ground, on the same Continent as my children, like six months ago. 20more minutes, how will I ever entertain myself for that long? Oh my goodness, I am going to be holding my babies today....TODAY!!!!" With my heart racing I quickly realize, I am in Africa. I slide open that puny excuse for a window and take in the glorious view. I see lush green everywhere. Hills and valleys filled with tiny little huts. There running thorough it all is the Nile. It looked proud and regal, a country with a terrible history. Yet filled with people determined to persevere. It was not hard to figure out while Uganda has been called the Pearl of Africa. Uganda is a paradise, really it is. The temperature, while it may be hot for some, for us Texans it is perfect. The colors there are amazing, it is almost like they are exaggerated. Like what you would see in cartoon. The vegetation is the deepest and brightest shades of green you could ever imagine. The dirt, a beautiful shade of orange and red. Dark and rich. I can close my eyes and see it perfectly. The sun shining brightly, warming my body, yet the temperature is a perfect 78 degrees.

I am such a multi-sensory person. For instance, I don't just drink a cup of coffee, I experience it. I enjoy my coffee best it a glass cup, without a lid. This way I can feel the warmth of it on my hands, inviting me to take it in. I love to feel the steam on my face as I peer into the cup, breathing in the magnificent aroma. Then and only then, can I take a sip and truly enjoy the taste of this rich treat. This is how I experience most things in life. This is how I experienced Uganda.


I feel I have been both blessed and cursed by this way of experiencing life. Blessed because I so easily see the wonder in things around me, enjoying fully the grandness of creation and all the Lord has made. Cursed, because I also see and feel with the same intensity the effects of our fall. On a normal day, it is wonderful. It is exactly what I expect it to be, it is a manageable experience. In Africa, it was overwhelming. Even now as I type, I can feel it. I can smell it. I can see it when I close my eyes. The beauty and glory of this wonderful land. The terrible tragedy of poverty, disease, and death that lies with in it. It takes my breath away.

As I begin the task of unpacking my heart, and laying things out, I feel it is important to share exactly how I viewed my experience in Africa. We sing a song in our church, and in it is the line "Lord take me deeper, into the glories of Calvary." It is always my prayer, to know God more. Every time I sing this song, I pray that the Lord would grant me this request. That He would show me exactly what my savior endured, and what that means for me. That my dear friends, was the theme of my time in the Pearl of Africa. "Deeper into the glories of Calvary." Every experience I had, was from the view of my Savior, as He came to earth to make our adoption possible. It is so very hard to explain, but I hope as I write over the next several weeks, it will become more clear. The Lord indeed answered my prayers, and took me much deeper than I ever dreamed I could go. I felt the deepest depths of pain, and the highest of joys, as I began to know my savior more. I pray now, that I never forget, never.

Balance

I hate to travel, really I do. I know that there are those of you out there that have a sense of adventure running through your veins. You long for new things, new foods, and new people from strange and wonderful lands. I am married to someone just like you. I admire your ability to just go with the flow. Me, I long for continuity. I love waking up in the same bed each morning, in the same town, expecting the same things from my day that I experienced the day before. It's funny how the Lord puts people together. Richard and I balance each other out quite nicely. If we both had that need for adventure, our lives would be chaos. As we are it is perfect. He forces me to be adventurous, and find the pleasure in new things. I drag him along my "normal" life and he sees the value of stability. We are a perfect match. So needless to say, over the course of our Ugandan adventure, he was dragging me full speed through all sorts of new and um... exciting things. Would you believe it began at the car rental place? Yep, I wanted the SUV, he wanted the Impala. I wanted the large (safe) practical vehicle. He wanted the sporty (fun) car. As we drove away in the "safe" choice, I smugly thought to myself "That's right dear, we are doing this thing safe...all the way." My smug sense of contentment didn't last long. Before I knew it he was demanding we find something to do in London during our ten hour layover. There was no way he was spending ten hours in an airport. There was no way I was leaving it. It was maddening really, trying to convince him that ten hours was not enough time to toss about a city the size of London. Not to mention, we had never been there. What if we got lost? What if we couldn't make it back in time to catch our flight? That would most assuredly lead us to miss our court date....and then what??? Still he insisted, so like the good obedient wife that I am I consented to explore the possibility of leaving terminal four, for the bigger and better views of terminals two and three. Nope, he was not giving in. There are castles in London, and he was not going to stop until he saw one. (here is the part where a really sicko confession comes in, the kind you don't want anyone to know about, that is why I am posting it on the world wide web....you know that whole confess your sins one to another thing) So I find myself on a plane to London, more than enough adventure for me for the day, thank you very much. I sit down in my seat next to my sweet beloved, buckle up, and think to myself. "I know it sucks that Richard just tore his ankle to shreds, and that he can barley walk. I feel bad for him really I do, but thank you Jesus, this means I am staying in the airport!" Sweet victory, it was a shame it had to come at the expense of a twisted ankle, but clearly it was God's will we stay at Heathrow, right?

WRONG!

Never underestimate the drive for adventure. It will cause a grown man, with an ankle the size of a full grown elephants, and the color of ripe purple grapes, to toss about a city the size of London for about 6 hours. I hated it at the time, but now, I am thankful for that stubborn husband of mine. I got to see London, spend way too much money on a subway sandwich, and he got to see a castle. Much more exciting than terminal two. I should know, we went there too.

Mck Mama

I have been following this woman's story for over a week now. See that button on the right, with the picture of people who are not me or my family...that's her. Click on it, it will take you to her blog. There you will read about the struggles her and baby Stellan are going through. I hope you will be inspired to pray for them both.

I Think I am Ready

I think I am ready to talk about Africa. Many posts to follow :)

Whatever Your Doing

God is doing something in my heart. I am not yet sure what it is, but He is moving. Just the other day I had the thought "I don't know what your doing Lord, but it feels like chaos." That is truly how I feel. He is moving, and I am sitting here amidst a jumble of feelings and thoughts. Trying to sort them all out, yet afraid of what He might be doing. What is going to be the end of all this chaos He is beginning to sort out? I have been pondering many things in my heart, for quite some time now. Not just about adoption and Africa, many thoughts on many things. Though they seem varied and unconnected, I know they are not.

On the way to church this morning I heard a song for the first time. It may have been on the radio for a while now, so it may not be new to any of you, but it was certainly new to me. I nearly had to stop the car when I started listening to the words. It summed up perfectly what I have been thinking. It is a song by Sanctus Real, here is the bridge:

Whatever You're doing inside of me
It feels like chaos but I believe
You're up to something bigger than me
Larger than life something Heavenly

Whatever your doing Lord, I trust you.

I'm Jealous

Really, I am. I wanted to be able to witness today's solar eclipse in person, to experience in full this amazing event . We even took the time to find out where to closest place to view it was going to be so we could travel and see it. Unfortunately is was too far for us to travel, so pictures will have to suffice. Maybe I will be able to hunt down some video footage.

This picture was taken from the Great Wall in Jiayuguan, Gansu

This photo is from Gauta, Gansu providence.

Pretty cool huh?