Random Thoughts Vol. 7

It's Monday again, and it's been gloomy and rainy here. But, the temperature was warmer. So, if we can get the sun to come out on a warmer temp day, we might actually have Spring arrive. We had an enjoyable weekend of not having much to do, which was refreshing after being so busy the last few weeks. I went to the crop on Friday night and got a respectable amount done. I started a new album for Max and it is current now. I did a couple of pages in Michael's album as well. I just ordered some supplies online, since I am out of tape runner and page protectors. When I'm not so lazy, I'll post a couple of pictures of pages. I also started an album to put things in to document our adoption wait. I'll post some pictures from that as well.

This weekend also gave me time to get a lot of homeschool stuff accomplished. I planned the rest of the school year, organized the homeschool table, and caught up on some record keeping. Only 38 more days of school for the Morehouse Academy, which has us finishing up during the week prior to Memorial Day. We've planned a family vacation the week of Memorial Day, so that is perfect. Making the vacation arrangements was something else we accomplished this weekend. We're going to King's Island, The Creation Museum, and Spring Mill State Park in southern Indiana.

Yesterday was the official groundbreaking for our church's new building. We stood in the wind and rain while the leaders took the ceremonial shovels of dirt from the ground. It's exciting to think about that building and that property and all that God has in store. We're blessed to be a part of it.

I'm pumped up for Dolly Parton night on American Idol tomorrow, even though it won't include Chikezie singing "9 to 5" (a CLASSIC film, by the way). I was sad to see Chikezie go, since he was way more interesting than Ramiele, Kristy, or Syeshia. I'm hoping Jason steps up his game, Little David's game continues to drop, Carly stops being so desperate to win (have fun for pete's sake), and for David Cook to continue to be interesting (regardless of whose cover of songs he chooses). All I have to say is if one of those non-interesting girls sings "I will always love you", I might throw up. Here's hoping it can be avoided!

Ready To Scrap

Tomorrow night I'm headed to a 6:00 PM - Midnight crop. I've spent tonight cropping and organizing pictures. Hopefully this will help me be efficient tomorrow and allow me plenty of freedom to talk with friends and still get something accomplished. All I have to say, is either I take too many pictures, or we're busy people. I think the latter is correct. Anyway, I'll let you know how I do, and maybe post pictures of MVPs (most valuable pages). I'll also be back to post some random thoughts (I know you're excited now!).

Random Thoughts Vol.6

Welcome to random thoughts, basically a purging of what is in my mind whether truly interesting or not. Don't you love the picture above? That would be my mouth, with my newly installed bottom braces. All I can say is that I truly hate them. My mouth is getting better - I only need wax on one side now instead of all the way across - but things are still very achy. Plus, I will occasionally spray saliva out of my mouth, which is just inconvenient. Oh well, as Ryan says, only 18 months to go!

You may have noticed that I didn't post my opinion on last week's
American Idol. The reason is that my mom always taught me if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all. So, this once I will heed my mother's advice and only say that I hope this week is better.

As far as other television viewing, Lost continues to entertain and astound me. I'll miss it while it is off for a few weeks. Even though there have been a few flawed episodes, its worst is better than most that is on network tv. I've missed the last couple of episodes of Survivor, but since I read spoilers online, I usually know pretty much what will happen anyway. Our church is starting a new sermon series using Survivor as a theme, so there are cool Survivor decorations all around. Very fun! One show I find very fun to make fun of is America's Next Top Model. Ridiculous!

This weekend we finally bought a new refrigerator. The kids are more excited than Ryan and me! They are mostly excited about it having ice and water in the door. I'm excited because we bought our old one used when we moved into this house, so it had seen better days. I was finding it funny that Michael was so interested in how much the refrigerator cost. After we left the store, Michael asked Ryan how much it cost, and when Ryan told him, Michael asked, "How much money do you have left?" Then we had to explain the whole working for a living, saving money, blah, blah, blah. It is funny how their minds work!

While we were at Pokagon State Park last week, we stopped at the outlet mall in Fremont and as a family we picked out a snuggly blanket for our baby girl. It's one of those unguarded heart moments, but that's okay. I'm doing much better with that. I'm choosing faith, hope, and joy. Here's a picture of it. It says "butterfly kisses" on it, which reminds me of an episode of SpongeBob Squarepants, which makes me smile.

Humbled

I just wanted to take some time at the end of this sacred day to share how humbled I am by the love of God. I was reading earlier this week about Jesus being the Lamb of God, and how He was a spotless lamb, a worthy sacrifice, and how He was innocent of any sin. I am so humbled today because I am not spotless, worthy, or innocent, and I needed Jesus to take my place. Praise God for taking me "while I was still a sinner" and cleaning me up, covering my guilt and shame with His blood, and extending His worthiness to me. It's an incredible gift, an extravagant love, and I'm so thankful and grateful.

Back From Our Break

We got back yesterday from our short get-away to Pokagon State Park. We had a great time there, we always do. It was very relaxing, and it was nice because the place was practically empty. We had the pool and hot tub to ourselves, and we spent time putting puzzles together in the cozy lounge area. I personally greatly enjoyed just letting my brain shut down for a few days. This time we stayed in a suite that had a living room and separate bedroom. It was very nice to have the extra space for the kids to play. I'm so thankful that we were able to take this time and step away from our everyday lives for a short break. As always, these times when it's just the five of us are precious and special. I feel incredibly blessed to have Ryan and the kids.

Random Thoughts Vol.5

Welcome to the weekend edition of random thoughts. I decided to post a few things before our family heads out to Pokagon State Park in Angola, IN for a few days. We are all excited about a few days away and a break from the routine. So, here are my random thoughts before I head out:

*Although I'm disappointed, I'm not surprised that David Hernandez was voted off of American Idol. I think several other contestants should be quite thankful to be still going in the competition (Ramiele, Syesha, Kristy). I'm also disappointed because they are doing Beatles week again. But, it's better than Gloria Estefan week.

*All I have to say about Lost is, what in the world is going on, and WHEN in the world is it happening????

*Today we finally painted Madison's bedroom. I think it's been over 2 years since we started talking about doing it. It's a small room, so it seems like it should be pretty simple, but there's always more to it than you expect. Ryan and I are both exhausted, but her room is done (well there's still finishing touches to do). It is now a wonderful shade of pink, and it makes me want to eat cotton candy.

Have a blessed Holy Week, and I'll check in when we get back.

Encouraged To Celebrate

I've posted before about my "heart monitor", my way of protecting myself from getting hurt or disappointed through our adoption process. Recently, God spoke to me about this. For a while now, I'm been holding onto the verse, "the joy of the Lord is my strength." So, the other night I decided to look it up so I could write the verse and its reference in my notebook. Well, my guess was that it was in the Psalms, but I was wrong. It is in the book of Nehemiah, and it is the second half of a verse. It comes after the Israelite exiles have returned to Jerusalem and rebuilt the walls of the city, and the priest has read to everyone the laws given to Moses. The people had been weeping as they listened to the words of the Law. Then Nehemiah says, "Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is sacred to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength." It goes on to say that the people celebrated with great joy.

I was so encouraged about this, because I often really hold back from celebrating our baby girl. I try to keep my heart so closely monitored, instead of full out celebrating what I believe will happen. I want to whole heartedly believe that God will bring our baby girl to us, and excitedly anticipate it. I was explaining it to Ryan and said that it's like when the Chicago Cubs win the World Series - for fans like him and me, those victories will be super sweet because we have hung in there through some very tough times with the Cubs (we've both been fans since we were kids). But, in the midst of their run for the title, there will be bandwagon fans, who, when it seems apparent that the Cubs are going all the way, will be saying, "oh yeah, we knew they could do it!" I don't want to be a bandwagon believer - celebrating and believing once the victory is finally within reach. I want to celebrate and believe even when it seems impossible, which is where our adoption resides right now. I look around me and nothing implies that this baby will be in our house for sure in the next 2 years, if ever. Nothing except one - GOD! And what HE says, I will trust. And when He gets her here, how much sweeter it will be because we had faith all along that it would happen. Thank you, Precious Lord! I will faithfully trust, come what may!

American Idol - Beatles Night

Well, American Idol's Beatles Night wasn't the complete disaster I thought it would be. In fact, in some ways it was pleasantly surprising. Here's my list, starting with my favorite:

1. Chikezie - Wow, I loved it! I've not been excited about him, but I thought this was great. I hope he sticks around and we see more great stuff like this.
2. Jason & Brooke - I like the same things about them, so I'm putting them together. I just enjoy the raw, not-so-powerhouse voices they each have. Jason's wasn't the best of his, but still I really enjoyed it. Brooke is growing on me week after week. I want one or both of them to go far in the competition.
3. David Cook & Carly - They seem similar to me as well. I think they both did a great job and I enjoyed listening to them. I'm okay with either of them going far in the competition.

Note a big gap here!

4. David Hernandez & Syesha - They both sang well, but their songs and performances weren't up to par with the others. I've never been a Syesha fan, so she can go at any time, but I would like David to stay so we can see him reach his potential, but I fear it may not happen.
5. Rocker Nurse - She gets this spot because at least I can say she isn't boring. I just don't thing she can last, however, since she can't truly sing.
6. Michael & Ramiele - Neither of them have blown me away and I find them both very boring. I won't be sad to see either of them leave.
7. Kristy Lee - It was a disaster, but I'll give her this - at least she tried. She was doomed if she did and doomed if she didn't. If she would have stood up there and sang the song straight, the judges would've creamed her for it. So, I look at it as at least she tried. And, she sang it fairly well and REMEMBERED ALL THE WORDS, which is why she's in this spot and not last. She is a top candidate to leave tonight, but history shows that sometimes America comes out in full force to give the train wreck one more week. I wouldn't be surprised to see the boring and forgettable Ramiele leave tonight instead of Kristy.
8. Little David - I just feel at this point it is completely unacceptable to forget the lyrics not once, not twice, but three times. This is a young man who won the Star Search competition, and has sung on national television other times. People have been destroyed for making less egregious mistakes in the past. I doubt he'll be voted out, but he should be - he not only forgot the words, but he didn't sing well.

So, I'm not sure if I'll watch tonight's results or just wait and find out on the internet after it's over. It can be unbearable to watch 57 minutes of filler to get 3 minutes of information. Feel free to leave comments telling me how much you agree or disagree with me!

Random Thoughts Vol. 4

Welcome again to random thoughts, occuring at a very early hour on a Monday. So, this version will probably be even more random than usual.

*It's officially Monday, March 10th, which means it's my mom's birthday. Happy 66th Birthday, Mom Deak. I'll probably call and tell her that since the chances of her even knowing what a blog is are very slim :)
*Our church had a big bowling party today, with about 180 people participating. All I can say is 7 is too many people to have bowl on one lane, especially when half of them are kids, and their bowling balls move down the lane at an inordinately slow speed. Regardless of this, a good time was had by all.
*American Idol is now down to the top 12 and for the most part I agree with those who made it there. As for last week's performances, Jason Castro and David Cook were my favorite guys. I still like Stripper Hernandez, but I didn't think he did the best last week. My favorite girl is Brooke. My least favorite fashion trend: high waisted pants with funky buttons. Please, someone help these people!
*Survivor has been pretty interesting so far. I'm not sure I needed to see Jonathon get his leg stitched up, but there have been lots of blindsides which are always interesting. But, I'm not sure I really care who wins. I probably have a bigger list of people that I don't want to see win than a list of those I want to win. I guess as far as this season goes, the glass is half empty for me.
*Lost continues to entertain and confound me. I guess this is the relationship many have with this show. Last week's episode wasn't the best, since it didn't really move the story along. But, Ryan and I both enjoy the insanity that is Benjamin Linus and the freaky actor who plays him (see above picture). For those who were watching all I have to say is, "YOUR MINE! Take all the time you need."

Baby K's Birthday

My baby turned 4 years old today. It's so hard to believe. Max brings so much joy to all of us, I can't imagine our family without him. I love seeing him with Madison and Michael, and seeing how much they all care for each other. God has richly blessed us, and Max is just one of the many ways. I pray he will love God with all his heart, soul, mind, and strength. I pray he will seek the Lord in everything. And I pray he will continue to grow in wisdom, and in stature, and in favor with God and mankind.

Random Thoughts Vol. 3

I had planned to post some random thoughts yesterday, Monday, but it just didn't get accomplished. So, here is the new Tuesday edition of Random Thoughts:

*I spent Friday and Saturday in Fort Wayne with my college roommate, Amy, and another college friend, Deanna. We try to get together once a year, and this year opted for the girls only outing instead of the entire family event. It was a very nice weekend, but it went way too fast.
*Since I was gone on Saturday, I missed Michael's basketball game, so I missed the first time he's scored a basket in a game. Despite not witnessing it, I was incredibly excited and proud.
*My favorite TV show, "Lost", continues to blow my mind. All I can say is that I hope my IQ is high enough to understand how this all works out. Crazy!
*I found out today my favorite American Idol contestant, David Hernandez, used to be a male stripper for males. I've decided to root for him anyway in hopes he can leave this past life behind him. But I will say, I'm not sure I'll watch his dance moves the same. Maybe I'll just listen. On a whole, I'm underwhelmed by the competition, and hoping for some people to have some break out performances soon. I'm not a big fan of the younger David - I'm sick of hearing how wonderful he is. The same thing happened with Melinda last year. I stopped wanting her to do well because I was tired of them fawning over her so much. My second favorite contestant is dred-head, guitar-playing, Jason Castro. I don't have a favorite girl contestant, but I do have favorites to leave, and at the top of that list is the rocker nurse.
*Sunday we watched the movie "Facing the Giants". I had actually purchased it a few weeks ago, but we finally had time to watch it. We had seen a couple of scenes from the movie during church, but this was the first time to watch the whole thing. I really enjoyed the movie and would highly recommend it. I was expecting a cheesiness that often accompanies "Christian" films, but there were only a few cheesy moments. So, if you're looking for a good, wholesome movie, appropriate for the whole family, I definitely recommend "Facing the Giants."