Officially accepted....What will his name be?

Even though Dee and I feel very confident that this precious little Ugandan boy is our son, we still decided to get some opinions from a doctor, even though we know it would not detour us from accepting. A family friend and neighbor, Dr. Roe graciously checked out his medical records for us. He explained his condition when he came to the orphanage and how much weight he has gained since then. He is doing much better than he was doing when he was brought to the babies home a couple of months ago. He seems to be a generally healthy little boy under his circumstances. Oh..and Dr. Roe is actually going with Sixty Feet to Uganda in a couple of weeks...he said he could go by and see our child to check him out personally. How cool is that? I am thrilled that God has so orchestrated all these events perfectly already. He knows the big picture, even though we don't! Oh, we can so rest in his sovereignty.

Then on Sunday, we as a whole family ventured across town to a church that was offering immunizations at cost. The people at this church clinic we so excited to meet us and so encouraged that we were adopting from Uganda. They had a retired Infectious Disease doctor there who answered lots of questions for us and had a lot of experience in Africa. The missions coordinator offered to let us borrow a medical kit to take with us and some water purifying bottles for free. I think we save 350.00 on the shots too! Wow...what a blessing they were to us! ....Talking about shots....oh my goodness are my arms sore...no one told me I would not be able to lift my arms for 48 hours. Here are some pictures of us after we got our shots...we ate lunch and got some ice cream as a treat of enduring the needles....

That afternoon, I was able to talk to Jennifer Chambers, the International Adoption Clinic doctor in Birmingham. What's so cool is that I know her from the Lifeline Videos that I had to watch during my homestudy preparations. But, my real connection to her is, my parents. My church I grew up in is helping to start a church in another area of Birmingham and Jennifer Chambers husband is the pastor. What are the odds of that? And their church is full of internationally adopted children. So neat how God aligns things so perfectly. My parents are getting immersed with the beauty of adoption...so their hearts will be more open to our little one! So my mom sent  her the medical information about our referral and I was able to talk to her on the phone with out traveling to Birmingham to meet with her. She gave me lots of good information about his health and how the transition will go when he gets home. I have lots to learn and many books to read to get prepared, but I know ultimately it is about trusting God to love this adopted child.

After a weekend of lots of emotions and meeting with three doctors that the Lord graciously provided in our path....We officially accepted our referral yesterday!! This is so crazy and so surreal!!

Our social worker contacted the orphanage to tell them we are thrilled to become his parents! So I guess our picture will be put above his crib? So neat. Oh and this is the actual picture he will see of us. We had to take one of just the two of us up close. Taking these pictures forced me to learn how to use the timer on my camera! It is not the best picture, but it will have to do and he won't care. It is most important he knows that he has parents who already love him. (Oh, yes, I finally got my lense in the mail from Hong Kong, thank you Lord)

 I am working on putting together a care package to send him with pictures of us and other goodies for him and the other children in the orphanage. Any advice on what to send?


What is his name going to be?

 CHARLES TUCKER

Well, my husband is actually the one that came up with his name. For the last seven months we have been praying for Charles Tucker, talking about Charles Tucker our Ugandan brother, and telling bedtime stories with Charles Tucker very much apart of them all. Often Henry and Charles Tucker are beating up the bad guys and rescuing Mary Taylor, or Henry and Mary Taylor rescue Charles Tucker from Uganda and bring him home to our house to sleep in Henry's bed. So to our family, this child is Charles Tucker. It is also biblical to change someone's name when they are adopted into God's family in the Bible. Saul was changed to Paul when the Lord changed his heart and made him a new creation in Christ. Not everyone chooses to change the name, but we feel confident that his name is Charles Tucker.

More to come on the reasons why we picked this name! My husband actually might grace himself to do a blog post! I never thought I would say those words.

Continue to pray that we get a court date before the courts close on July 15th!!

In love after 36 hours.........................

 If you haven't heard yet....WE GOT A REFERRAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It has only been 36 hours since I saw the face of our future child and I have already experienced so many emotions...I don't know what to do with all of them! I can see why people say this is the hardest part about the adoption process...I just want to jump on a plane and go pick up our child and bring him home....NOW!

The first night after seeing his face...I cried myself to sleep thinking about how long it might be until we see him and morning the time we have missed in his life. But, the Lord quieted my heart by saying...'this is the child I have for your family and I have taken care of him and held him in my hands, trust me'  This precious child with cute little rosy cheeks, gorgeous eyes, and a beautiful smile is not ours...will never be ours. He is God's child. I can so rest in this and know God has a plan for this child...hopefully in our family. In a very short amount of time..this face has captured my heart and I am so in love! I automatically view the world in a whole different light. I definitely did not expect to feel this way at all. Last night, Dee and I started the movie, Invictus, with Matt Damon and Morgan Freeman...I think I cried for the first ten minutes of the movie. Seeing African people... knowing the struggles they have endured in our world for hundreds of years...was brought to a whole new light. Now that I see the face of our child...this struggle has all of a sudden become more real and even personal. Then, yesterday as we ran errands, I realized I did not have a picture of our child with us...I felt strange...like something was missing...I needed to tell people and show people them we have another child, but he's just not with us yet. It was a weird feeling, but a good one. After explaining all of my emotions to Dee, I can tell he has somewhat distanced himself after our initial excitement in getting the referral. He just doesn't want to get too excited, because this little boy is not our child yet. The adoption process is long and with everything that has been going on in Uganda, it is just unpredictable. So, as I fall head over heals for this child...Dee is standing back, trying to guard his heart. I guess we balance one another. We are going to just have to give all these emotions and feelings to the Lord and just let him sort them all out, but I can tell this is not going to be easy...I am needing JESUS in a whole new way now!!

Thank you all so much for your comments, your calls, and your excitement...it all means so much more than you will ever know! Oh, I wish I could show you pictures, but under Ugandan Law they prohibit pictures of orphans in a public forum, such as blogs and facebook, during the adoption process...it could prevent us from adopting him. Please pray that we receive a court date sooner than later! God is so good and I am over joyed with his blessings!

WE GOT A REFERRAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We got a referral of a precious 20 month old boy from Uganda today!!!! I am thrilled to announce we accepted after two hours of seeing his face!

Around 12:00 p.m. today our agency called me while I was in the car on the way back from the doctor's office. With my kids sick in the car, I sat in the drive way listening to the description of our child from our social worker at Generations. She said, "he is very beautiful...she had to stop for a second when she first saw his picture"...I was in shock and thrilled at the same time....We have a referral!!!! I called Dee at his office and told him the news as he proceeded to open the email...he said, "oh...here it is".... Then, I hung up on him because I did not want him to see the pictures while I was on the phone. I wanted to see him for myself! 

So I drug my kids into the house to look the computer. As they tried to push each other out of my lap we sat there in front of the computer screen and opened the email.... ((No, it was not this peaceful quite time that I had imagined in getting a referral, but...it's real life!))... when I opened the email and looked at his picture, I thought, Wow, he is beautiful!...Henry said, "He's cute!", Mary Taylor said, "Daaaa"...I tried to call Dee back, but my phone died and then my kids were really upset. So I let Henry watch a movie and fed Mary Taylor lunch. Of course all I wanted to do at this point was go downstairs and look at his face again so I could soak it all up! Oh my gosh! We have a child!!! I finally got to talk to Dee....he said, "Wow, this all of a sudden got real!..This just feels right"... and he said we should talk about it tonight and ask our pediatrician friend down the street to look over his medical records. He had to go pretty fast because his firm is moving buildings today and it was a little chaotic.

Ok, right, we need to take our time and pray and think about this decision. He is two months older than Mary Taylor...'they' say it can be hard with a child older than one of your other children. So that's a factor to think about...Oh my, he might be older than two before we see him...All these thoughts are running through my mind!....Oh my goodness....we have a child from Uganda!!!!!! I get Mary Taylor down for a nap and Henry has fallen asleep in front of the TV after he lost his marbles for the fourth time today. Poor guy! (t.m.i.) Now...I finally get a chance to see his face again. Oh my...he is just precious and beautiful! Is this really happening!!!! Our child is real!!! 

Why are we waiting to make a decision? Isn't this the child God has hand picked from the beginning of time to be in our family. We knew we were going to say yes to the first child we received, unless we had a clear indication that this was not God's will. But... it just all feels right! I tried to convince Dee to put 0-1 on our homestudy, but clearly God knew that our child would be older, so he used Dee's wisdom to weave our story and we decided to ask for a child 0-2 years old. 

So....I called Dee back and I said,"Why are we waiting to make a decision? There are 147,000,000 orphans in the world and I don't think I can look at this precious face any longer without accepting  him as our child! I know we should think and pray about our decision, but I think God has already made the decision for us! Let's just do it!" Dee said, "ok!...let's do it!" 

So I called our agency to tell her "We Accept!"...Well, she said, "Great!" But, I still want you to take the weekend to think about it and take his medical records to a doctor to look them over. I know you probably will not change your mind, but just take the weekend and call me on Monday." 

Well, yes, our minds are made up, but we will do as she says and take the weekend, but in our minds we have accepted and we are moving forward!!!

What's the next step? 

 After we talk to our social worker on Monday, she will contact the orphanage in Uganda. Then we will send our Dossier to the Ugandan government and hopefully receive a court date sooner than later. The Ugandan courts close from July 15th-August 15th, so it will be the end of August at the earliest. 

We are just so excited to KNOW the child that God has loved, ordained, and perfectly planned to be in our family!!!!

(Due to Ugandan Law we cannot post pictures of him on our blog. Thanks for understanding and hopefully sooner than later he will be in our arms and home with us forever for lots of pictures to come!) 

The Cupcake Kids helping children in Uganda

The Cupcake Kids are at it again, baking in their kitchen getting ready for another sell this Saturday to support the children of Musika. Several men from Sixty Feet, including David Roe, a neighborhood friend who is a pediatrician, are all preparing for another trip to Uganda in a couple of weeks. They hope to get a lot accomplished and continue to work toward a better living situation for these orphans. Find out more at Shelly and Dan's family blog, Good to Be Crazy.

A Great Saturday!

On Saturday, after our family's weekly trip to Trader Joes, I had the privilege of eating lunch at The Swan Couch House for Aunt Julia's 90th birthday. The Swan Coach House is a very proper lady luncheon southern restaurant. I have been there a handful of times for wedding showers and other special events. It can be a little pricey, but, it is worth the experience if you ever come to Atlanta, especially if you want a taste of southern culture and tradition.

Along with my sister-in-law Jennifer and my mother-in-law Susan, we celebrated Aunt Julia's 90th birthday. You would not believe that she is 90 years old! She is still very active planting flowers and herbs in her yard, sewing clothes, driving, doing lunch dates with her friends and being a very active member of her church. Aunt Julia is in amazing shape! Of course, I would have loved to have had my camera, but these picture will have to do!

This is back in April when Aunt Julia came for Nana's birthday. 

Mary Taylor really enjoys her!

This is last Christmas when Aunt Julia and Grandmother Dot 

are reading a book to cousin Dexter.

After our lunch, I ventured off for an afternoon all to myself! Yes, my hubby had the kids at his parent's house for the day. It was a much needed break! Thanks sweet husband, even though the next day was Father's Day!

My favorite place to go once I get a moment to myself is not the mall, but...thrift store shopping! I think I have an addiction! I love finding great expensive things for nothing! It works well for our budget and it is really really fun! This day, I decided to go to one of my favorites, Thriftique. After showing up at their normal location, I realized Thriftique had moved to a new one right down the street in a much bigger and nicer building. It is right next to a train track with trains that come by every thirty minutes. I can't wait to bring Henry, he has an obsession with trains, like all boys! I can shop while Henry and Mary Taylor watch the trains out the window. 

After I had collected my seven cloth napkins for 25 cents each and my grey Gap t-shirt for a $1.00, I brought it to the check out counter where an African American women was talking about her trip overseas to another women. Out of curiosity and trying to make conversation, I asked the lady where she had gone? She, Jacqueline, said, "I went to Uganda." My stomach dropped and my face lit up. I asked her, "What were you doing over there?" Jacqueline was over in Uganda helping at an AIDS hospital for women. Of course, I proceeded in telling her, "We are in the process of adopting a child from Uganda." Jacqueline was shocked and thrilled that we were adopting. She was over in Uganda with a chrisitan organization and her faith grew tremendously as a result of being there. I was just in "ah" of God and how he works. So encouraging and confirming he makes my steps! God is so good! I had tears in my eyes as I continued to talk to Jacqueline and her friend Eloise for the next thirty minutes about Uganda. Jacqueline gave me a big huge hug before I left and I promised her I would bring her a picture of our child as soon as we get one, hopefully within the month! What are the chances of me meeting her? There are no chances, just God's perfect plan. Not only did we get to talk about Uganda, but I think I have made some great new friends. Life in Christ is never boring or mundane, it is always an adventure and an amazing story that continues to unfold!

I continue to be amazed at God's blessings!

Happy Father's Day

Happy Fathers Day to all the many fathers in my life....

To my crazy father who always creates fun for everyone around! I am glad our relationship is growing and we are understanding each other more. I am blessed to have you as a father.We love you T.T.

 (This summer, a couple of weeks ago at the lake)

To the father of my children who puts up with all my particular isms and loves me despite my sin. You are an amazing father and husband and I look forward to all the plans God has for us together!

(Fall 2009 when Henry was 3 and Mary Taylor was 12 months..War Eagle!)

To Pop who loves my children dearly. Henry talks about you and prays for you every night and Mary Taylor loves jumping in your lap every time she sees you. Thanks for loving us and being a great grandfather! We love you Pop!

 (summer 2009 at St. Simons when Mary Taylor was 8 months)

  As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him. Psalm 103:13 

And to my heavenly Father who loves me unconditionally through Christ Jesus. Thank you for adopting me into your family and making me your daughter.

  A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows,
       is God in his holy dwelling.
 God sets the lonely in families,
       he leads forth the prisoners with singing;
       but the rebellious live in a sun-scorched land.
Psalm 68:5-6

Please pause the music at the bottom of the page to hear the music on the video.

My camera and Christ's blessings

Summer has kept us really busy around here, not sure why, but I am exhausted! But, having a lot of fun too!! I don't have many pictures to document the last several weeks, because my camera lense broke and I ordered another one from Ebay. Little did I know it was going to be sent from Hong Kong! Well it has been in the mail for a week and it's still not here! Is God trying to teach me something? Have I made my camera and recording our life an idol? Knowing me...yes! But...Christ brings hardships and trials into our life to draw us closer to him...where we truly belong...where we are truly at peace. This is such a silly thing and it has not been that hard...but still an example of my heart and where I put my hope and trust. I truly have been a little lost without my camera. Realizing that even breaking my camera is part of God's will helps me to know he is after my good and redeeming me and wants me to have true fellowship with him. As my dad always says, "He is faithful to bring hardships into our lives." How can we say he is faithful to allow something bad to happen? Our God knows we will not look to him for life, unless we want less of this world. So yes, he is faithful to bring trials and tribulation for our good! And, this is a BLESSING! Yes, I am saying that breaking my camera was a blessing! Strange, Huh? But something to think about?

Talking about Christ's blessings...On Thursday, we hopped on over to my friend Andrea's house to help take care of her kids while she makes crib bedding for Maury's first baby that is due in August. Maury is a mutual friend that I know from church, but she happens to be Andrea's cousin. Such a small world!! So I thought, what a great way to help Andrea get out of town, get to know Maury better, and let our kids play together. It was a win win situation for everyone! While we were there, Andrea snapped some really cute shots of the kids and I so appreciate these...since I have not recorded their life in the month of June! Yes, God provides and gives us little blessings in our hardships too!

Sweet little Frank wants to be just like big brother Parker and his friend Henry sporting their Africa shirts...

Spiderman Henry, Batman Parker, and Princess Laney all ready to 'play super heroes save the princess from the dragon!'

 

The super heroes needed to rest from fitting dragons...

 

The little kids got up from their naps to come join the fun!

Mary Taylor is three weeks younger than Frank, so its fun to see them together!

Mary Taylor was cooperating a little better than Frank...I think they have switched roles!

Such a blessing to see our kids playing together and really getting along well. That's always a plus...especially since the Youngs will be one of the only families we will personally know with a child from Africa. Andrea is going to pick up her son, Isaac, from Ethiopia in 6 days! I am so excited for their family and I am thrilled to be at the airport when they arrive on July 2nd!  It is important to be friends with other families that look like yours. What a blessing to already know families that will be going down this road with us. We will be able to support and encourage each other along the way. I am thrilled to welcome the Young's BLESSING home in less than 13 days!

LGH film-Moving On

An adoption blog friend, Sara, posted this trailer to a movie done by Light Gives Heat (LGH films) called Moving On. This story about life in Africa (specifically Uganda) and how it effects us in America. This looks very inspiring! I can't wait to see it! The founders of LGH were inspired by adoption back in 2005. Dave and Morgan hope that:

In sharing our story, we hope to
encourage others to live life boldly, respond to needs, live with hope, and think outside of themselves.

Deseptively Delicious

Like all parents we want our children to be good eaters. So when they are babies, you only give them homemade pureed vegetables with no spices or sugars. They don't know any different so they love plain sweet potatoes, bananas, and butternut squash...right? Well, not this little girl.

Mary Taylor (15 months)

I made homemade pureed vegetables for her when she was six months old, but she would not touch them. I stopped feeding her baby food and tried again when she was seven and half months old and this time she gagged every time I fed her. So I decided to go buy store bought organic baby food and see if she liked it any better. Well, finally we realized she liked any store bought baby food with bananas mixed with another fruit...the bananas had to be the first ingredient. She would not settle for apple/banana, it had to be banana/ apple. Her favorite was banana mango baby food by Earth's Best.

So... this is how she came into the world, not to mention how hard breast feeding was for her too, that's a whole other story in itself...considering I breastfeed her brother until he was eleven months old. 

So a year later, she continues to be very very picky. She likes yogurt, milk, cheese, fruit bars, and bread all the time. She likes beans, turkey, chicken, frozen blueberries, pumpkin pie, smoothies, sweet potato fries,  squeezable fruits from Trader Joes, Target, and Publix sometimes. Pure vegetables and fruit are a never. I am constantly trying to find new recipes with hidden fruit and vegetables that she will eat.

My sister-in-law, Jennifer, gave me the Deceptively Delicious cookbook for Christmas a couple of years ago. About 1 year ago I started to try a couple of these recipes. I spent a week pureeing fruits and veggies...it was really fun! It was a lot of work, but it was my newest creative outlet and I had to do it all at once. Yes...this is my personality...I get very into something and do it all full out and I will keep doing my task until I finish it. Not a good trait to have when you need to take care of children too. I definitely had to tapper this part of me once I had kids. You only get an hour or less to do something and then you have to be a mom again.

So after trying several of these recipes, I found one that the whole family likes and another recipe that mommy and daddy like. I have made both of these recipes part of our dinner rotations.

Everyone in the family loves these Pita Pizzas and little do they know that I have secretly sneaked in some spinach. Hehehehe!

Pita Pizzas with Spinach

prep: 3 minutes
total: 18 minutes
Makes 8 mini-pizzas
No Meat

Ingredients:
8 (4-inch) whole-wheat pita pockets
1/2 cup spinach puree
2 cups bottled tomato sauce
2 cups thinly sliced part-skin mozzarella

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F
2.Spread spinach puree on each pita so that the spinach comes to within about 1/2 inch of the edge. Spread the sauce over the spinach; it should cover the spinach and come to within about 1/4 inch of the edge of the pita. Now lay the cheese over the sauce, covering any place where the green comes through.
3. Place the pizza on a foil-lined baking sheet and bake until the cheese melts and begins to brown,  5 to 10 minutes. Let the pizzas cool 5 minutes before serving so the cheese cools and doesn't pull off (and the spinach stays completely invisible).

The author, Jessica Seinfield says: "The spinach puree in these baby pizzas provides your child with a hearty dose of beta carotene, plus 3 grams of fiber. Tomato sauce adds lycopene (a potent antioxidant that helps to enhance overall health.)


Mommy and Daddy love this next recipe and we are hoping that Henry and Mary Taylor will learn to love it too. What kid doesn't like mashed potatoes? ....Mine!

 Twice-Baked Potatoes with cauliflower

Prep: 15 minutes
Total: 80-85 minutes
Serves 4 or more

4 large baking potatoes
1 cup cauliflower puree (I usually use the whole cauliflower)
1/2 cup reduced-fat sour cream
2 tablespoons trans-fat-free soft tub margarine spread (I substitute butter)
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 slices turkey bacon, cooked according to package directions and crumbled (optional, I don't usually go to the trouble for the bacon)

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Scrub the potatoes and prick them all over with a fork. Place them on a foiled-lined baking sheet and bake until a knife penetrates easily, 50 to 55 minutes.
3. When the potatoes are cool enough to handle, cut them in half lengthwise and scoop out the pulp, leaving a thin (about 1/2 inch) shell.
4. Mash the potato pulp with the cauliflower puree, sour cream, margarine (or butter), garlic, salt, and pepper. Spoon the mixture back into the potato shells. Place the potatoes on the baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes. Sprinkle with bacon, if using.

*This meal definitely takes some planning, but it is well worth it... I think. I boil and puree the cauliflower in advance, so it is ready to go when I need to mix everything together. We usually eat broccoli or spinach salad with this meal. It is super healthy and really yummy! And it reheats really well for left overs the next day and maybe the next!

But, as my mother often reminds me..."This is exactly what you were like! You were very picky and very particular about e.v.e.r.y.t.h.i.n.g." And my husband would say, "Some things haven't changed!" And I would say, "At least I know why Mary Taylor is this way, or I would think something is wrong with her. I feel like I can identify. So it helps...sometimes!"

I think this is just a taste of what is to come in the future! Yikes!

Adoption update: Dee talked to our agency worker at Generations yesterday and she said it would probably be two months or less before we will receive our referral. We are only fifth on the waiting list to receive a child, so I am not sure what is taking so long, but I am learning, TIA (This is Africa) and of course God's timing....which is perfect, so I pray that my heart would lean towards wanting God's timing for our adoption.

Jeanette..a diamond in the rough

After only five weeks of friendship our family says goodbye to Jeanette.

Back in April, I took the kids to a nearby park to meet some friends at our church playgroup. After we were there a couple minutes, Mary Taylor escapes to play with some kids underneath the playscape. I walk over to see who she has met and to my surprise, she is talking to some kids with a lady that is probably their nanny considering their opposing skin colors. As I said hi and started talking to this nanny, I realized she did not have an American accent. I thought maybe she was from England or Africa, but I wasn't sure, so I asked her. She was most definitely from Africa, and I was more thrilled to meet her. Jeanette is an aupair from South Africa and she has only been in the states three months. God seems to be putting more people from Africa in my path and I am always so excited to share how God's leading us to their continent. Of course, I proceed to tell her we are in the process of adopting a child from Uganda. Jeanette seemed very pleased with our decision to adopt and agreed that Africa has an overwhelming orphan problem. After we talked a little more, I informed her of our weekly church playgroups and told her she should join us. She was very excited to hear about our church. Jeanette said that she had been looking for a one, but she did not know where to go. So I got her email address and told her she could come with us...So I emailed her and then a week later we picked her up on our way to church.
The rest is history!

We soon learned that everyone loves Jeanette. She is so friendly and loves children. My kids grew attached to her very fast, especially Mary Taylor. Jeanette is one of those people that is very discerning and understands people. She is very honest and open and a very rational person. And a lot of fun too! But, most of all she understands her need for Jesus. She has a real love for people that can only come from our creator. So, we became friends pretty easily... But, after three weeks, she informed us that she was going back to South Africa for personal reasons and she would rather not talk about it. So we respected her request and said that we would pray for her, but we were there for her if she needed to talk.

Jeanette taught us so much! She opened our eyes to the differences of American life and the life in Africa. Life in Africa is so much harder and at the same time so much easier. Jeanette never worried about having the best birthday party, or making sure you have money to send out Christmas cards, or any of the social pressures we face here. Their biggest worry was making sure they had food on the table. And she informed me that she did not always have a full belly going to sleep. There were many nights that she went to bed hungry. But, she never cared about that, she just knew she had parents that loved and cared about her and would be there for her. Unlike many children around her who did not have parents, who lived on the street. Jeanette also thought it was interesting that Henry gets money when he does chores around the house. I also told her I got an allowance for cleaning my room when I was growing up. She just laughed and said, "We just had to clean our room because we were part of a family." By talking to her I realized how spoiled we have already made our children, just by living in America. Our kids think they deserve and they expect to get certain things like dessert, toys, ect...this is a true problem. Dee and I have made our kids like this. This will take time, consistency, and lots of pray to reverse this pattern. But, the first step is realizing we have a problem. I told Jeanette, maybe we should just move to South Africa, life would be easier if we did not have to worry about all these social pressures, life would just be more simple.

Jeanette also gave me another glimpse into the life of being a minority in a white world. I had no idea the extent to which South Africa still experiences extreme racism. They are many years behind American in moving past segregation. Dee did his thesis in college on South African history, so he knows much more about this struggle than I do, but it was different to hear it from a person and the things she and her family have had to endure. I have had the "white privilege" of being oblivious to racism most of my life. So it is just in the last ten years my eyes have been open to this unbelievable struggle that so many Americans go through everyday, just because of their skin color. It is so so very important to understand and hear from people that do experience this and realize it is real, so we can become more sensitive to people's struggles. Understanding where she comes from allows me to sympathize with others like her.

Jeanette is also an amazing chef. I hope to one day see her on her own cooking channel! She made two Italian meals for us while she was here and they were so yummy! I am going to try to recreate her masterpiece meals, but with my cooking skills it will be a stretch!

The last night she was here, we decided to have a dinner party and invite her good friend Rubie and her fiance Jim. We all enjoyed Jeannette's delicious salmon pasta and salad, along with my homemade chocolate sauce poured over ice cream with strawberries. What a treat! Of course Henry tried to jump in on all the fun, but it was past his bedtime. Yes, and don't forget the wine!


 Jeanette was convinced by the end of her stay that we were being called to move to South Africa. She said she had several dreams about us moving there and maybe that's why we met her. I am excited to see God weave our story. Who knows where he will take us?


Even though we only had a month or so to spend with her, we will really cherish the time we spent together and the things we learned from her. I will continue to pray for her as she moves back into her life in South Africa. Thank you Jeanette for allowing God to use you in our lives! We miss you!

The Lake...a dog and child's paradise!

The Lake is an all time favorite for dogs and children....

Bell and Milo love the lake for the freedom of roaming wild! When we get home they usually sleep for three days straight!

The lake is an unlimited playground for Henry...he and Eric(his new best friend) had a great time shooting the other kids with their super soakers! Got to love boys! Of course, my dad is egging it on!

His fun continues with the boat. Henry was really brave on the inter-tub until a huge wave knocked Corrie and Darren off into the water...then he began to scream hysterically...that was enough for him.

The lake is always a great place to find wild life...

  Henry is pretty care free the whole weekend, until he gets hurt...then and only then can mommy and daddy be apart of his life again...

 Mary Taylor loves the lake for many reasons, but mostly because T.T. is there! My dad's 'grandfather name' is TJ (Tom Jackson), but she says "T.T." She walks around with her arms in the air until he picks her up. Too cute!

 

Mary Taylor is giving T.T. a pedicure with Milo as her assistant.

When T.T. is not around she finds plenty of other family members who will take the time to get some love...Uncle Robert...

Grandmother...

Aunt Amelia... (sorry this picture is too bright..I am still learning how to use the M setting on my camera)

After she has made her rounds...she gets her beauty rest here...Sweet..Baby..Girl!!

Both kids love eating outside on their own personal picnic table..until the dogs eat all their food when they aren't looking!

Don't get me wrong, the adults love the lake too and some for the same reasons as kids...except the part about being obsessed with T.T. (: No hard feelings..just had to get one in there for the good of the family.

 My brother Matt...

 Dee, Kelly, and Matt chill'n on the porch...

Deborah and Robert thinking about life..

We are so blessed to enjoy the lake as a family and continue to make lasting memories. Henry and Mary Taylor won't be the same without it! Thanks mom and dad for bring us all together!