God's encouragement as we wait...

We are in the middle of trying to adopt our second child and have run into some complications, thus we are playing the waiting game.

Today, I checked e-mail and there was a a message from a friend back in the St. Louis area. This friend was so involved in our first adoption as far as encouraging me, praying for our family, and even fasting once a week on behalf of our child.

I haven't talked to her in awhile, so she has no idea what is going on with our adoption process. Anyway, she had a dream about our family last night, as it relates to our 2nd adoption, and wrote me about it to let me know she is praying for us.

When I read her e-mail, I was so encouraged and felt such a sense that God is near us and working on our behalf. I am amazed at God's love and the way He gives us signs of his presence all the time. He has always done special things for me in my life and He never stops.

I am also thankful that my friend took time to e-mail me. She has 5 small kids and a very busy life. It would have been so easy for her to dismiss that dream or not bother to tell me about it. But she is a devoted person when it comes to her walk with God and anytime she has a sense to pray for someone or share an encouraging word, she is prompt to do so. I think that is why God uses her so often to be a source of encouragement and blessing to others.

Even though we are sitting here in WI and our baby is somewhere in TX, I have such a peace today that God is hearing our prayers and working for the good of our family. What a great gift to have this morning!

random thoughts

- i'm reading a book about parenting in a post modern world that is completely challenging me. good stuff. i have so much to learn as a mom and it is the best journey ever!

- tonight had dinner with a friend in the mba program and completed an internship marketing ice cream. learned so much about ice cream and my next ice cream purchase i am heading for hagen daz.... except in november when i am headed to buy a pint of dreyers touchdown sundae ice cream. this is the ice cream my friend is getting on the market to sell for super bowl season. i am so proud of her getting this product on the market and can't wait to try it!

- went to the park today with my good friend to talk about life. i tell her that she is my zen. i know that sounds weird, but she seriously gives off this peaceful presence and energy whenever i am around her. it is such a good presence to be around. she helps me process what is in my heart and encourages me. very thankful for our friendship!

- can't wait to sleep in tomorrow. chris is taking liliana for their date and it is my morning to sleep in. one of my favorite things!

Hidden treasures

Our last day of StayCation 2010, we decided to spend the day in Milwaukee.

The only time we travel to Milwaukee is for the airport (they have cheaper flights when our family from Texas visits) and to go to the Brewers baseball game. So, my concept of Milwaukee was that it's just another city with liter and nothing much to boast about.

I was wrong.

First of all, we went to the lakefront and it was beautiful and clean. We spent time playing in the sand and on the playground near the beach. Now that I know we are only 1.5 hours away from a beautiful beach on the Great Lakes, this will be a family destination many times next summer. The lake is blue and gorgeous and feels like the ocean because you can't see the other side. It was a perfect day to walk and play on the beach!

Then, we ate at the most amazing Italian restaurant down town. Again, weather was awesome, so we ate outside and people watched. Chris decided that he offically ate his favorite Italian dish to date for lunch that day.

Next, we headed to Sprechers brewery for a tour and tasting.





Sprechers is a micro brew that makes great beer and also gourmet sodas. After the tour we were able to sample 4 beers of choice and unlimited sodas. Chris was excited about the beer and I was excited about the soda. This was the most delicious soda I have ever had in my life. I usually don't drink cream soda, but I have to say it was amazing. Same with cherry cola- this soda had no caffeine and you could taste the quality of ingredients compared to a regular coke. So yummy.

We brought along Liliana's princess tea cup so she could drink her milk in it while we tasted our samples. (Although I do admit I let her try a little ginger ale in her tea cup as well)





Milwaukee ended up being a city with hidden treasures. Can't wait to go back and explore some more.

Stay-cation

I used to think the idea of stay-cation was kind of cheezy, but I am now a huge fan. Our family had our first stay-cation this past week. We decided to take day trips around Madison so that Liliana could sleep in her own bed at night. It seems that lately whenever we travel it literally takes 2 weeks to get her back in her rhythm of going to bed at night. Let me say, it's not worth it.

Plus, we are still fairly new to the area and there's lots we haven't yet explored. So it was a good occasion to try some new places and just enjoy some days off.

It was absolutely refreshing.



On one day of our stay-cation we visited the WI Dells and took the Duck Boat Ride. They have army surplus amphibian boats from WWII that can travel on land and water. The Lake Delton and Wisconsin River are both beautiful areas and it was fun to travel on land and water in one trip. We traveled near some sand rocks that were beautiful. Our driver showed us an area had these 2 rocks that met with a small opening. It is naturally colder in this pocket and so Native Americans used this area to store their food. I love seeing how the Native Americans lived off the land and how nature sort of provided what was needed. Super cool.

Happy Wednesday

Tonight I was working after I put Liliana to bed and all of a sudden I heard this sound I couldn't discern. I checked the windows and doors to see if someone was pounding on them and when I went to the back patio I saw fireworks going off right outside my back window. I have no idea what they were celebrating on August 11th, but the fireworks were what you'd see at a 4th of July celebration. It was such a fun surprise.

Liliana woke up scared from the sound, so I took her outside and we sat and watched the fireworks together.
What a random way to celebrate a Wednesday!

Quinceanera

Last night we went to It's a Mexican party for girls who turn 15 called Quinceanera. It is aparty that is celebrating a girl and passing into adulthood. I loved it! It was actually like a mini wedding- her dress was amazing, decorations, catered meal, dancing, decorations, flowers.

Beyond that though, I love seeing cultures that celebrate passing from childhood into adulthood. Jewish culture has bar mitzva and bat mitzva; many African tribes have a call to manhood when the boys come out to hunt with the men of the village. I think there is importance of celebrating that passage. Even though our American culture does not celebrate this passage, I consider doing something for our family.

I remember an episode of the Cosby Show when Claire was taking Vanessa out to New York City to celebrate becoming a woman. It was a tradition she did with each of her girls. When I watched even that tv show I remember thinking how great that would be to do one day with my daughter.

Right now we are celebrating the passage from crib to bed; diapers to potty chair. ... One passage at a time!

Happy Adoption Day

It's been 2 years! Woo Hoo!

Chris and I decided last year that we want to celebrate Liliana's adoption day each year for two reasons:

1. Her birthday is on December 28. It is a bummer having your birthday in between Christmas and New year's Eve, so we love the idea of having time in the summer to celebrate Liliana.

2. We are so thankful for the day our daughter became ours officially and we want to remember and CELEBRATE her coming into our family.

We have been starting to talk to Liliana about adoption lately. I know she doesn't really understand what we are talking about, but she knows that she was adopted because Mommy and Daddy love her. She knows adoption is positive and good, so that works for now.



We have a book about adoption that I got out to read to her, but I can't get through it without crying. I read it three times and each time I come to tears as I recall holding my daughter for the first time and the wave of joy and love that swept over me. I actually put the book away because Liliana doesn't understand the concept of "tears of joy". To her tears mean you are sad or you fell down and have an ouchy. I don't want her to think I am sad about the adoption book, so I am going to read it when she gets a little older and I am not quite so emotional. (Although, I may always tear up when I read the book, who knows?)



To celebrate Adoption Day this year we went to the zoo and then we went to Target to pick out a new play-doh toy for her craft time. We had so much fun as a family!


Happy Adoption Day Liliana!

Boston

Chris and I went to Boston this week on a business trip and his mom came up from Texas to watch Liliana.

It was great to have time together with just the two of us. We had a layover on the way to Boston and we were both so excited to have down time to read, journal and eat lunch at leisure. (I know, it must a sign of old age when you appreciate layovers at the airport.)

We attended the Blue Ocean Summit with pastors and church leaders from all over the country.
Thought provoking. Challenging. Exciting. Relationship building. Encouraging.

For those interested, there should be online talks posted soon to notreligious.org