Picture Perfect: Vacation

We headed to the Indiana State National Dunes this past weekend.  We enjoyed four days of camping, hiking, and the beach.  We were thrilled to be able to spend the day with my sister and her family.  We also took Our Guy on his first real vacation.  Here are a few snapshots of the weekend.

You CAN Help: Sacrifically Give [Up]

147 Million is a daunting number.  It's easy to look at the number think it's too big to make a difference.  This is especially true if you don't feel called to foster or adopt.  However, I believe there is a part for everyone.  You CAN Help!

One thing you can do is you can sacrificially give by sacrificially giving up.  Everyday, we as Americans, make choices of how to spend our money.  Many times this is extravagantly.  I very much include myself in this.  While my husband and I stay pretty frugal and don't spend a lot of money on extras we still could give up.  (Our $8 a month to Netflix is an example of this.) 

So what can you give up?  Is there something that cost $5 to $10 a week that you could sacrifice to fight for the orphan?  Starbucks coffee? A magazine? Going out for lunch? Pop? Ice cream? Going to the pool? Those new shoes? Having an at home date rather than a going out date? 

One person could save $260 a year for the orphan.  With an adoption costing $30,000 this doesn't seem like much.  But let me put it to you this way...I have an average of 40 view per post and if each person did this it would be.....$10,400.  That is ONE THIRD of the cost of an adoption saved by just giving up $5 week by the small number of people who read this measly little blog.  WOW! 

So is there something you can sacrificially give up to give away to love an orphan?

Here are some organizations you may consider donating to:

Show Hope: Steven Curtis Chapman and his wife are the founders of this organizations.  Their desire and dream is to bring the fatherless closer to a father (family) through grants.  They also have Maria's Big House of Hope for disabled orphans in China.

Lifesong for Orphans: Like Show Hope, Lifesong for Orphans desires to bring children into forever families.  They are also working to provide Christian housing, schooling, and food to orphans who will never see a family.

Project Hopeful: Carolyn Tweitmeyer cares for the least of the least of these by supporting families who are bringing home children with HIV, Aids, and other "adoptable" diseases/illnesses.

Local Orphan Care:  Does your church have an Orphan Care Ministry?  Check them out and see what you can do to support them. 

Orphanages:  There are orphanages around the world that desperately need funds to keep their doors open. PLEASE NOTE: I am NOT advocating you type in "orphanages" into Google and support the first one that pops up.  Know who you are supporting before you do!

Foster Care Ministries:  Communities and churches are starting to open their hearts and eyes to the local orphan, the foster child.  Is there a ministry locally that you could support that is doing this?  Check out The C.A.L.L. in Arkansas or The Forgotten Initiative

Focusing on the Good

In my last post I mentioned that of the four people in our family I was probably struggling the most.  Part of it is boundaries that push against my personality (I have too much compassion and grace) and so I can get walked over too easily.  But I wanted to share some of the awesome things that have been happening as a way to encourage myself more than anything.

*Our guy went to Tony's younger brother's graduation two days after moving in.  Tony's family rocked!  They were just incredible.  Our guy told his mom that he felt like he fit into the family and that he wanted to be a pitcher (in baseball) because all of Tony's brother's were pitchers.

*Four days after moving in: when someone (outside of our immediate family) he got mad and said that was "his chair."

*He has asked a million and one Biblical questions.  He is spouting off the next before I can answer the first.

*He loves doing nightly Bible times with Tony.

*He convinced his mom to go to church with him.  (Can't wait to find out if they actually did).

*We got to hear him pray more then just a rehearsed prayer.

*He thanked God for being part of our family.

*He will claim Addilece as his sister.

I think I will be doing a post like this every once in awhile because it puts a smile onto my face.

Our Guy

So our guy has been here about a week.  I just wanted to update you on how everyone was handling the situation.

Our Guy:
Well, over all I think he transitioned in pretty well to our family.  We sat him down with in the first 48 hours and layed down some rules and guidelines.  We also made it clear that we would not only be his last foster family, but while he was here we would consider him family.  We are having some problems but I think those were exsiting ones which his former foster family has been working on for 5 months. 

Addilece:
Over all I think Addilece is happy.  Our guy has been a lot more excepting of her over the last three days, playing with her more like a sibling.  He even asked her for a hug when he left for a weekend at him with his mom today.  We had a very tender hearted daughter at first.  She would cry at the drop of a hat and wanted Daddy or me and no one else.  We've seen her return back to normal lately (minus her sleeping...she is still ending up in our beds most nights).

Tony:
Tony is amazing with Our Guy.  He has been doing a Bible Lesson with him every night.  He is firm but caring.  He takes special time to play games and do sports with him.  Tony's word is golden and he handles Our Guy much better than I do.  When Tony's here there are very little agruements.   

Me:
Of the four of us I think I am having the hardest time.  Our Guy struggles with lack of structure and teaching for the first 10 years of his life.  He also feels pretty entitled.  This brings a lot of disrespect from him.  I'm not even sure he realizes he is being disrespectful but he is.  If I say anything negative (ie...I don't want you to....Or I need you to stop....) I get met with a "BUT" and an argument about how he is not in the wrong. This is said pretty disrespectfully.  My husband is very wise however and has been giving me a lot of good tips on how to deal with it.  My biggest problem is keeping my emotions in check.   

New Addition

As you know we welcomed a new person into our family last week.  Because of that I haven't been keeping up with anything other than housework.  So now it is catch up time. 

A week and a half ago my nephew, Aeron Azariah made his entrance into this world.  He was 9 lbs, 20 inches long.  He is just a beautiful little guy.  My parents got to meet him this past weekend and said, "He definitely has some Kayla in him but boy there is a lot of Grey in him!!"  Unfortunately we won't get to meet him for another 2 months.  I just hope he doesn't grow up too much in that time.  To see a picture and read more about his name check out my sis-in-laws post on him.

Congrats Kayla and Austin!!!