Today We Went To Kings Dominion

We took our last trip of the season to Kings Dominion today.  I had taken the girls for their birthday in the beginning of June and this time was Zachary's 1rst trip ever and Bob was there too so it was a special blessing since it was all of us (except Antonis is at his Dad's house).  We had a great time together!!  The girls love the Scooby Doo Roller Coaster.  It's now called the Ghoster Coaster or something like that, but back in the day it was the Scooby Doo so it still is to me!  Bob took turns taking each of the girls on it.  Kalista and Karisma were afraid to go at first, but then Anna went on and they couldn't let their little sister show them up!  Zacky had a fit everytime Daddy left to take one of the girls on the roller coaster.  I had to convince him he was coming back, etc.  He is so attached to his Daddy.  I was feeling the temptation to have Bob watch all 4 kids and to go off on one of the insane roller coasters but it never materialized.  It would be fun to go some day just Bob and I and ride coasters all day long.  We ended up leaving the park around 6:30ish because at 7pm Haunt was starting.  It's sad to see how evil has permeated so much of this world we live in.  It's just getting worse and worse.  As we were leaving and seeing all the people coming in for the Haunt I felt like yelling out to them..turn around..go back!!  So many are lost.




 

We're Getting Closer..

Things are moving along with our adoption process!  Bob goes in for his individual interview with Blythe (our adoption social worker) coming up on Oct. 10th and our Homestudy and my individual interview are scheduled for November 10th.  Before Christmas we are hoping to be on the "waiting list" to adopt a baby. 

Here's a couple more pics of the current pre-adoption crew! :)

Mmmmmm..homemade ice cream!  Antonis loves it..(vanilla)

Cute Picture

It's the whole crew!  From left: Zachary (almost 3), Annalise (almost 4), Karisma & Kalista (7) & Antonis (13)

I AM ENCOURAGED!

2 Corinthians 7:6 (Amplified Version- my FAVORITE!) says, "But God, Who comforts and encourages and refreshes and cheers the depressed and the sinking, comforted and encouraged and refreshed and cheered us by the arrival of Titus."

Well MY Titus arrived today in the form of my neighbor Claire!!!  She has graciously offered to help with our homeschool moving forward this year and it was such an unexpected blessing to me from the Lord!  She is a stay-at-home Mom with a sweet one year old son named Lliam and her and her husband Luke just moved here over the summer from Washington State.  They are originally from California and were involved with Calvary Chapel on the West Coast.  They used to attend CC Costa Mesa and even sat under Chuck Smith's teachings!  They sought out our Calvary upon moving here so not only are we neighbors but we attend the same church!!  It has been such a blessing to have them move into our "backyard".  They live in the house directly behind us.  God is so GOOD.  He has plans for our lives.  It's hard in those in-between times though when things are rocky and we don't know what the plan is.  Just hang on.  Joy comes in the morning.

Family Life

Today was Kalista & Karisma's first day of ballet classes!  They were very excited.  I haven't really encouraged them with lessons of any sort but Kalista came to me about a week ago and was absolutely dying to try ballet.  So naturally Karisma wanted to do it with her so we signed them up through the county.  Antonis was gracious to take a picture of me with the kids!

Zachary has been trying his hand at painting...

Antonis is back in Fall Baseball for his 4th season.

                            Annalise is just having fun being toted along to everything.  Her time will come!

Daddy Bear and his cub

Exciting Day!!

The kids and I took a trip over to Bethany Christian Services this afternoon to submit the remaining paperwork that comprised our formal application for our adoption!  It is exciting for things to be moving along..next we will have 3 interviews with our social worker.  One will be a conjoint interview with both Bob and I and then we will each have a separate interiew with her.  After the interviews we will have a home study where the social worker comes out to our house and meets the kids and makes sure our home is safe and has room for another little one. 

I am filled with joy anticipating what God holds in store for us but at the same time my head swims with everything we have going on here already!  God is teaching me to continue to rest in him and not to measure the success of my day by the world's standards.  The perfectly clean and tidy home, straight A's on the kids report cards, everything checked off the to-do list...it's just not necessarily what God has for my day!  It's more about being right with God and fulfilling His purpose for each day...not mine.  He is definitely preparing me for this sixth child to enter our house!!!  It's a big step.  God is with us!

What a week!

It's amazing to walk with the Lord because you can be so much closer to God than you used to be but He is always calling us closer.......we have begun a very challenging school year and the remedy is to press in closer to Jesus..to get into the Word MORE!!  The remedy is not to quit homeschooling and send all the kids to school because it's getting hard.  I have instituted a new course to our lunchtime meal which is a reading out of the book of Proverbs.  We are moving towards feeding our children 3 courses of spiritual food each day.  Jesus is the answer to all of our struggles.

The Lord continues to teach me that I am to follow His lead each day and not anyone else's.  It's so easy to be in that perpetual state of feeling like you are "behind" and not enjoy the moment.  Always racing to the next thing and not having alot of fun in the process.  He is teaching me to rest in where He has me and to not put any yoke upon me that is not of Him.  There is such peace in resting in Him..it is such a delight and brings such joy and contentment.