Totally and Completely Random

We had our first cold front of the season today. WAHOO!!! I can't tell you how happy this makes me. Waking up to cool air and a strong wind in south Texas, a rare a special treat indeed. Especially in September. I love fall, and I am always excited when the time draws near for all things fall. Of course it is not nearly as beautiful here as it is in other parts of the country. Everything here just turns brown and dead looking. I am going on a short trip to Michigan in a few weeks, so I am hoping to get to see some "real" fall weather. Crisp cool air and amazing colors of red, orange, and auburn. Ooh, I can't wait.

Grace had a raging bladder infection a couple of weeks ago, she just finished up her antibiotics.
1. Bladder infection
2. Strong antibiotics
3. Any guess what comes next????
Fun, I feel so bad for her. She however is very pleased with the extra helpings of yogurt and this yummy probiotic juice drink I found.

My beloved is away on Ike detail. He left yesterday to go clean up the downed trees. He says it is a crazy mess. Terrible destruction. I am always amazed at the power of God displayed in nature and the frailty of our human existence in contrast to His great power. With all that we have "accomplished" we cannot stop hurricanes, tsunamis, tornadoes, or floods; nor can we create them. We cannot stop the sun from setting and rising at it's appointed time. We cannot stop the changing of the seasons. God can. Wow. I am weak, but He is in deed Strong.

Yesterday William says "I wanta go anda see my frieends, Joshua and Zachariah. Dey are back dere. Let's a go."

I told him that they are in Oregon with their new mama and daddy. Maybe one day we can go and see them.

He says "Yeah, we go tomorrow."

I said "No baby, it is a long way away. We can't go tomorrow. Besides, what about daddy?"

"Yeah, daddy go too."

"Nope," I tell him "Daddy has to work. Maybe we can call and talk to them on the phone. OK?"

"OK"

Later that night he says to Kaleb "Joshua and Zachariah come here, OK."

I wish I could make it so he could see his friends. I can't. God can.
I wish I could make it so he felt comfortable enough here to make some new friends. I can't. God can. He is so comfortable at home, and still so shy around others. I know it will come, in time. I just wish for his sake it would be sooner rather than later. I wish I could help him understand, that his friends are not gone forever. That they have not forgotten him, just has he has not forgotten them. I can't. God can.

Yep, I am weak. He is Strong.

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.

Whirlwind

Wow! So it has been three weeks since I posted an update. Rest assured it is not for lack of updates. As you can see by the BEAUTIFUL pictures that have been added, the Lord has shown us our children. Needless to say we are hopelessly in love (can you really blame us??? Look at those smiles) William is four years old, and is described as Mr. Rogers. He is said to be sweet, steady, and very loving. Melissa is 2 1/2, we hear she is strong willed and has a very captivating personality. The kids are so excited. Grace has been waiting for a sister for so long. She asked me if I could dye her hair black and put beads in it, just like Melissa's.

We had our home visit for our home study this past Saturday. Way less difficult, than I had built it up to be. We have a wonderful christian social worker, she spent about five hours in our home. It will be nice to have a believer walk through this with us. It helps knowing that if we face struggles after the children come home, she will offer help from a biblical perspective. All we are waiting for is the proof of insurance and medical exams (which we will be doing on the 12th) then she should have our finished home study to us with in two weeks. So here is my "to do list" for this week

1. Medical exams for the 5 of us, including TB tests
2. Get my passport
3. File our i600a
4. Get vaccinations: Hep A & B, Yellow Fever, Typhoid, and Polio booster (for me, Richard is good to go)
5. Get started on scrapbook to send William and Melissa

I need to get everything sent out to Mandy (the woman who runs the orphanage) but we are about $3,000 short of the $7,300 we need to get things rolling. So please pray that the Lord will bring this in soon. Please also pray that our i600a gets approved quickly. We are told that as soon as that is approved we are 3/4 of the way there. I think this is also when they will tell the kids about us and start showing the the scrapbook of us.

One last prayer request: Our associate pastor, Jake, will be returning to Uganda for mission work. First and foremost, please keep him in your prayers. Both for his safety and fruitful proclamation of the Gospel. Also, he is going to try and get to the Orphanage. Oh, how I want him to be able to see William and Melissa. Somehow, it just seems as if he could just hug them and touch them for me, if he could just pass on a little of the love that is growing in my heart, then just maybe, I can make to April.