Beer Brewing

Chris' latest hobby is beer brewing. It started last year with one batch with his friend and has turned into quite an operation. I think we currently have 4 batches in our basement fermenting. They are staggered to be done throughout the next few months, just in time for Monday night football.

It's an interesting process and a fun hobby for him to do with the guys.

This nifty red thing is what they use to put caps on the bottles.



Liliana likes capping the bottles and my 1 year old daughter has now added the word BEER to her vocabulary. (Mama, Daddy, Hi, Bye, Up & Beer)

Yeah, I don't think we'll let the grandparents know about that one quite yet.

2 Way Street of Hospitality

Tonight we had dinner with our friend Emily. She is Chinese and cooked traditional dishes for us. Dinner was at 6:30 and she told us she started cooking at 2:30. She spent 4 hours cooking these Chinese specialities to share with us. I can't tell you how honored I felt.

(On a funny side note.. one of Sophie's favorite things to do lately is wave. She loves it. Literally every time she sees someone's hand go up or someone leaves she can't wait to wave at them. So, as we were leaving, Sophie saw Emily's buddha statue. This particular Buddha had one of his hands up in the air. Sophie was so excited when she saw him, pointed and started waving Bye-Bye to Buddha. So cute!)

Earlier today I had lunch with the lady who heads up Madison Friends of International Students. It is an organization that has been around for almost 40 years and they work with international students at UW to offer them conversation partners, opportunities to eat Thanksgiving with American families, furniture loans, etc.. It is a great organization and we have been involved for 1.5 years.

Sherry asked me why I am involved with MFIS. I told her that my dad immigrated when he was 17 and left his entire family in Greece. He would share stories of people who invited him into their home and made them feel like family when he first arrived in the USA. Those acts of hospitality are what helped my dad acclimate to this culture and start a new life for himself, his family back in Greece and the future generation. He would often tell these stories and so it just stuck with me how important it is to offer hospitality to people, particularly those who are far from family.

Hospitality is an amazing thing we have as human beings. Inviting someone to share a meal in your home, going to their home to try foods you can't pronounce. Laughing. Waving at Buddhas. It is life-sharing life. And I love it.

Who Thought up This Stuff?

Tonight I took the girls to play place at the mall to give them an outlet for their energy. As I watched Sophie climb on big spongy trucks and Liliana jump off of gigantic tunnels shaped like light bulbs, I wondered who in the world invented this stuff?

When I was a kid and you went to the store, you simply walked alongside your mom. Now kids have mini shopping carts at the grocery store and even a play area with pretend food and wall chalk. (This is what you find at the store up the street from our house. Liliana loves it when we go grocery shopping!)

Life as a kid is so much different. Gone are the days of having to sit perfectly still and quiet when in public. Now there are coloring books and activity walls and all sorts of goodies to entertain the kids.

I have to admit as a mom, it is nice having these luxuries so close to home. In the dead of winter, I am grateful for story times at the local Barnes and Noble where they have Clifford the Big Red Dog appear. Or when the library serves free donuts for the "Donuts with Dad" story hour.

Although I also want my girls to enjoy the calm of nature and to delight in sitting in the back yard and watching birds fly overhead, I am still very grateful for all the fun extras in our lives.
Thanks to whoever thought to put big sponge shaped objects outside the JC Penny's entrance. I am one grateful Mom!

9/11

Yesterday the weather was gorgeous and my girls happened to take an extra long nap. So.. I sat in the back yard with my journal and had a great time of thinking and catching up on life. It was much needed.

At one point I was thinking about Sept 11 and the 10 year memorial. I was actually flying into Germany 10 years ago on Sept 11. Shortly after we landed I was tired from jet lag and taking a snooze when our friends woke us up and made us go to the tv to see what was going on. It was so surreal. It was especially surreal not even being in the USA while all this was going on. The Germans were amazing and comforting and so compassionate. We were traveling with our band Warrior Poets (my husband used to play with a band that traveled around). It ended up being our last tour we did as a band and I will never forget it and the impact it had on our lives.

So, here I am 10 years later. I am a mom. I live in a safe neighborhood. My kids have no idea what terrorism means as they happily went to bed tonight with full tummies and a fun day under the belt. We have so many freedoms. I can read and write and have access to just about any resources I could possibly need. I can drive. I have a husband who values me as a partner in life. The list goes on.

I don't know anyone personally affected by 9/11, yet my heart can't help to be stirred. I think about the losses. I think about the heros. I think about the evil. I think about redemption and hope.

I remember as a kids going to lots of memorials. Greeks do a great job of honoring those who have departed.
(Of course as a kid the best part was the snack we received- a traditional wheat berry dish with raisins and powered sugar.)
As I have grown older I have come to appreciate memorials as a time to remember and share perspectives. They are a time to cling to life and make sure it is lived to the fullest.

So, while I pray for God's comfort to wash over the 9/11 families and individuals affected, I am also reminded to live my life today with no guarantee for tomorrow. To enjoy life and make the most of whatever moments I have. I am going to bed tonight with a full and thankful heart. I will wake up tomorrow ready to live dreams and take moments to look directly into the eyes of my family, to give lots of hugs and kisses. To live the life given to me.

Thank you God for life. What a precious gift!

End of Summer & Anniversary

The end of summer has arrived. Whew! (It was good, don't get me wrong. But I am super duper excited for Fall)

This Sunday will be our 2 year anniversary as a church. Looking back it seems like WAY longer. It's hard to believe all the people we've met and lives that we've connected with in just 2 years.

Two summers ago we had arrived in Madison and met with a handful of people in our apartment living room talking about our vision for Madison Vineyard Church. Now we have a vibrant group of people who call MVC their church home. Each Sunday is full of new people to meet & stories to hear. I never get tired of hearing people's stories and their spiritual journeys. It is one of the best things ever.

As we get ready to launch year 3, I feel grounded on one hand and completely full of faith on the other hand. We have no idea what this year will hold, but I know in my heart it will be good. We feel momentum and favor and JOY.

Bring on the Fall!

Sophie Turns 1

My little Sophie had her first birthday in June.

We actually had an early birthday party in Texas with our family there.







Then our cousins from St. Louis visited and we had a 2nd birthday party going to a water park at the Wisconsin Dells and having a blast swimming, playing and hanging out with them.




I love my Sophia Analise. (or more affectionately known as Sophie, Soph-Soph, Sofa, and Sofamatic)
Her smile brightens my dad and her joy is absolutely contagious!

Summer Fun part 1

Considering I am digging out our long sleeve shirts today and transitioning to the Fall, I thought it would be time for some summer updates.

We've been able to travel and see family and friends during the beginning of our summer, which is always great.
Chris' cousin got married in Texas, so we had the chance to go there for the wedding.

(Chris lavishing his love on his younger brother AJ)




It was the first time for Sophie to meet most of her cousins in St. Louis and my first time to meet my cousin's beautiful twins!







We also went to Chicago to visit my dad's sister, Georgia.



Very thankful for all the loving family in our lives.

K M

Life has been really good lately.

There's certain seasons where you feel like you are in a good rhythm of life and I am thankfully in one of those right now.

Chris and I talk about having "kingdom moments". It's when we are experiencing life as it was meant to be.

We seem to be having quite a lot of them lately. (or maybe we are just more aware of them)

Every day I stop myself and recognize these "K M" happening...

Looking at beautiful flowers and taking them in

Playing at night with the girls and enjoying their childhood imaginations

Eating food and really taking time to notice the spices and tastes

Hugging my husband and feeling so close to another human being

Listening to music that lifts my soul and sets my feet tapping

Enjoying a hot shower, knowing that many in the world have to carry their water from a well in buckets just to wash dishes

Going to a grocery store with every possible choice in foods right at my fingertips

Sharing conversation with thoughtful people

Sleeping in til 9:30 because my sweet husband took care of the girls (felt like summer time as a kid when i could sleep in as late as I wanted.. i LOVE sleeping in!)

On and on..

Life is full of KM lately.
Beautiful.

Easter 2011

We've been trying to explain to Liliana what Easter means and why we celebrate it.

We have a children’s Bible and so we turned to the crucifixion and resurrection stories.

Liliana looked at the picture of Jesus on the cross and she was
stunned the first time she saw it.

She said, “Jesus has ouchies? Why does Jesus have ouchies?"

It was this mystery to her.


I quickly thought, how do explain why Jesus has ouchies to a 3 year old?

I basically said something like- Jesus isn’t on the cross anymore. He is alive and he is our king that we worship.

That seemed to be enough to satisfy her curiosity for the moment.
But everytime we got out her Bible to read at night, she kept wanting to flip to that page in the bible and stare at it.


Then about a week later, Liliana came to me and asked:
-Mommy, when Jesus was on the cross, was he in a time out?

-Yes, he was in a time out. That’s a great way to put it.

- When He got out of time out was He a good listener?

- Well, Jesus always did what his Father told him to do, so He was always a good listener. But he took a time out for us, for the times we don’t listen and we don’t walk in love.




At first I thought it was just a cute conversation. But then it dawned on me that The Holy Spirit is speaking to my kid. He is explaining the atonement in 3 year old terminology. Jesus took a time out for my daughter Liliana.

It got me thinking how the Holy Spirit leads us into all truth. I love that God can reveal his love in the most simple terms to a 3 year old and also lead adults into truth that speaks at a different level.

It has been amazing to watch my daughter's own relationship with God start to form. She is very aware of God. I pray that she will have her own relationship and desire to follow him. As parents we want to be role models and show her how amazing it is to live life with Jesus at the center. But it is her own choice to follow Him. I'm excited to see it continue to unfold for her.

Hello Long Lost Blog

Hello Long Lost Blog...

There comes a point in blogging when you have neglected for so long that you aren't quite sure how to jump back in..

So...I guess I'll share some highlights from the past few weeks:

Family Trip to MN (actually a business trip that girls attended with us.) Fortunately our girls love to travel and be in hotels. Traveling is going to very much be part of their lives since all our family lives outside WI. So, it's a good thing they are up for adventures.




We also had a tour of the local fire station,







Dance party with Daddy- the girls LOVE it when Chris plays guitar and they can dance around the living room.





Lots of food parties with friends the past few weeks- Pakistani night, Asian night, Irish night, Home made pizza night and good ol' American comfort food night.




This will at least get me thinking about my blog.. more writing this week.

Focus group

I have a friend in the MBA program at UW and they were doing a project designing new products for Febreeze, so she asked me to be part of a focus group to give input. The students sat behind a 2 way glass and we had a panel of 8 ladies who had to vote and give input on the ideas.

It was so much fun!

First of all, I loved seeing the creativity of designing new products and the ideas that came forth. Some of them were complete bombs

(like a teddy bear your child hugs and inside the belly is a special mesh that releases an air purifying element.... Um.. NO thank you)

but there were also a few ideas that could actually do well on the market with a little adaptation.

However, what struck me is how conditioned I am as an American consumer. Certain words or phrases in their ads either drew me in or set me off. It was eye opening to see how much marketing has affected me, even though I don't really watch tv with commericals. It is still engrained in how I think and shop.

It was fun to see a glimpse of how companies create new products and test them on the market. Some of these students are going on to work in prestigious companies in a few months, so it was neat to see a behind the scenes glance of what their career will hold for them.

Visit

My 2 sisters and my niece visited this week. Very fun to be together. The girls love their aunties and cousin and I am thankful for a great family.

Unfortunately I totally forgot to take pictures. Chris managed to get one on his phone.

Recovering from Sickness

This weekend I was hit with food poisoning in a major way. I was up all night with trips to the bathroom and some the next day as well. I have to confess I am a horrible sick person. My attitude stinks and I feel sorry for myself whenever I feel miserable. I know some people have the ability to be chipper in the midst of sickness, but not me.

Saturday night I was feeling blah, so I asked Chris to pray with me. I didn't want to have a bad attitude and it was just getting worse. Chris listened to all my complaints and then he suggested we just take a few minutes to think about all we have to be thankful for in our lives. I knew his suggestion was a good one, so I agreed and we started.

At first it was kind of lame, but then as we kept at it, I could just feel the heaviness and bad mood lifting. It is amazing the power of thanks in our lives. I went from feeling sorry for myself to excited about life and all the good things I have going on. I was able to spend some good quality time with Chris and then later journal and spend some more time with God.

Yay for thanks! (and Yay that food poisoning is gone and I can eat again today)

Prayer booklets

Yesterday I was making a little prayer booklet for my daughters.

One of my favorite things about this age is feeding times. I loved feeding Liliana her bottle when she was little and would always take that time to pray over her and for our family. I guess my brain is more full now, so I need something to help me get focused on what to pray for; hence the little flip book of prayer topics. When I am feeding Sophie I flip open my little prayer book and spend some time praying for both the girls.

I feel like there is so much to pray for and it is exciting to think about helping shape these little lives.

I was thinking back to 2 other times I made prayer booklets. One was in high school. I was starting to learn more about the Bible and Jesus and I made a prayer book filled with different Bible verses to pray over my life. It was one of the most helpful ways to learn Scripture and made my prayer life so rich. I now have many of those verses memorized, simply from making that little book.

The second book was after I got married. I wanted to learn how to be a good wife and how to pray specific blessings over my husband. I made a book tailored to Chris and would pray through it on a regular basis. Many of those prayers have come to pass.

I think prayer is one of the best outlets God has given us as humans. We can talk to our Creator, listen, and have this amazing outlet to process life and request good things. It is such a gift. It reminds us of what is important and sets our minds on truths.

I am looking forward to seeing fruit and good things come from my little prayer booklet.

You're what??

One funny thing about being pastor is seeing people's reactions when they find out that is my vocation.

I can meet someone on an airplane, at the park, wherever.. the response is always the same.

-What do you do for a living?

- I am a pastor?

(shocked look on their face and not sure how to respond)
- Really?

Usually after the shock wears off they are curious and ask more questions.

It pretty much always happens that way.


I'm not exactly sure what a pastor is supposed to look like, but I guess neither Chris nor I fit that description.
I kind of like it that way.

Double Giggles

I love, love, love hearing the sound of my 2 girls giggling and playing. It is one of the best sounds in the world.




When we were in TX Liliana got a little princess tent and tea set. Every morning when she wakes up it is what she wants to play. Liliana and Sophie climb in the tent and roll around and just laugh. They laugh in the bath tub, laugh when Daddy pretends to be a lion chasing them, laugh and play dress up. Their lives are full of laughter.

Priceless.

Hooray for March!

We've been home over a week now and life is starting to settle in for our family. I am so thankful that March is beginning. Although February had an amazing gift of our daughter, it was a pretty overwhelming month for us. We have been exhausted and wiped out as a family, but I just sense that March is going to be full of fun, rest and celebration.

My sisters are coming up for 4 days to completely spoil us. My sister Bess is one of the most organized & clean people on the planet. She wants to cook up a bunch of meals to freeze, spring clean our place, and do whatever kind of practical stuff she can. My other sister Maria is an amazing aunt. She doesn't have kids of her own, so she goes overboard with her nieces and nephews. She always has crafts and games planned when the kids visit her. So, I know my girls will have a blast with her. They are also bringing my 10 year old niece to visit, since she is on Spring Break. Poor Chris is already outnumbered with 3 girls in the house and now it will be 6 females. I'm sure he will be slipping out and calling his guy friends that week, while we girls chat it up.




We also got invited to the twin cities for 3 days to be with the leader of Vineyard churches, Bert W. He is seriously one of the most wise people I have ever heard. He has an amazing passion for God, a thirst for knowledge and incredible humility. He is in his 60's, so when you hear him, it's totally like being with your grandpa. There's a handful of leaders from our region who were invited to spend a few days with him and we are so excited. The hosting church is putting us up in a hotel and providing a children's program for our kids. They host us once a year for these retreats and they totally spoil us- great food, great times together. It is a real treat.

March is also my birthday month. I reminded Chris tonight how much he was spoiled this year for Christmas and his birthday, so he can feel free to reciprocate. He always does a great job of celebrating my birthday and I'm sure he will have some fun and creative plan this year as well.

Yay for March! We have been waiting your arrival.

SOPHIE'S JOURNEY- HOME AT LAST

We are now home and Sophie is asleep in the next room as I type. Our week trip to Texas turned into almost 2 weeks with lots of unexpected events. To be honest, the past few weeks are kind of a blur to me, but the main thing is that Sophie is part of our family.

We got back yesterday around midnight. I put her in her crib and Chris said, "This is what we have been praying for. Here she is".




Sophie is a doll. Her eyes are so full of life. She smiles constantly. I was preparing myself for a baby that was unresponsive and fragile, but instead we have a daughter who loves to snuggle and be close and make great eye contact. Even though her life has had some twists and bumps, it is as if this huge shield protected her heart and spirit. Our social worker commented on her emotional health and so did my in laws. It is so evident that God's hand has been on her in these months we have been separated. I now pray that we can be good parents to raise her and help her learn to love God and live life to the fullest as a safe, healthy, thriving girl.

SOPHIE'S JOURNEY -PART 5

The beginning of January started the next leg of our journey.

It started with a dream.. I woke up one night and had a dream that D was back in jail and J was with Sophie crying and not sure what to do.

I woke up and prayed.

About a week later we found out it was true.

This next phase of the journey has been tons of phone calls, coordinating legal issues between states and too much detail for a blog. It has by far been the hardest part. Stressful, emotional, cumbersome, draining would be how I describe it. But, life is like that sometimes and in the end is it worth it.

Adoption can be bittersweet. It amazes me to see kid's stories and how their paths intertwined with familes from across the world. My cousin adopted their daughter from Central America a few years ago, we have friends who have adopted from Romania, Africa, Asia. We hear stories like that all the time, but when you stop and think about it, it is a miracle that we can travel across the country or even world and adopt children into our families. Yet, it doesn't usually come easily. I love talking to other families who have adopted because they understand. They understand the cost of adoption. Not just financial cost, but the emotional cost as well. At at the same time, they understanding the inexplicable joy that follows.

When we adopted Liliana, I had a some meaningful verses from the book of Psalms to express our journey with her.

For Sophie, it has been this verse from Hebrews 11:6:

"Without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him"

God has been taking me on this amazing faith journey. Over and over again I remind myself that God is a rewarder. This leg of the journey will soon pass and there will be a sweet reward on the other side.

Sophie isn't even in our home yet, but she has already taught me so much. She has taught me to love in ways deeper than I knew I was capable of doing. She had taught me to trust God and remain tenacious. I have loved this girl from day one and I am so thankful for the outlet of prayer I have had. I have learned to love her with my prayers for all these months and very soon, those prayers will turn into tangible love. Hugs, kisses, making meals, playing peek a boo, reading books.. all part of parenting. But how thankful I am to have a rich and deep foundation of love already built through prayer.

SOPHIE’S JOURNEY PART 4

At the end of October a shift happened. I was praying one day and instead of my usual, “Just wait and chill out” answer from God, I felt strongly I was to call Liliana’s foster family. Liliana lived with an amazing couple, James and Nikki, while we were waiting for paper work to go through. James and Nikki are a retired couple who live on a ranch called Mercy Ranch. They were both in the medical field and now volunteer doing medical missions and also devote their lives to helping unwed mothers. Their ranch is open for girls who need love and family. J lived with James and Nikki after she delivered her first son. She did not have support from her family, so they took in her and her son for a year. When she left their house, she started up again with the wrong crowd and got pregnant with Liliana.

I thought James and Nikki may know what was going on with J.
We found out that “baby sibling” was a little girl named Sophie. We found out that J was not doing well and that the girls were in some at risk situations, some of which were caused by D.

My prayer life began to change and I knew I needed reinforcements.
I had a group of people that often asked about our adoption and were committed to pray. So, I began e-mailing and explaining the situation and asking for prayers from a team of people. I knew Chris and I needed more prayer than we could do by ourselves.

I also went into pro-active mode.

We were planning a trip to visit family in Texas, so I called Carol to arrange for us to meet J & D. We knew J would not sign unless D did, otherwise he would have full custody. We also knew that J would not talk to D about it because that was a source of fights and aggression. D still had not processed the adoption with Liliana, even though he willingly signed papers. He was in jail during her adoption, so he never had the chance to meet us and we knew he was raw from that adoption, much less considering Sophie’s adoption.

They both were glad we initiated a meeting. We met D, J and Sophie along with Carol for lunch. We were at the restaurant for over 3 hours . They had a chance to find out how Liliana was doing. She was not with us at lunch, but they asked tons of questions and we had recent pictures. It confirmed to J that she made the right decision to place Liliana for adoption and she was so happy to hear how things were going. D shared his struggles and Carol did an amazing job of walking him through his healing process and how to handle his grief in a healthy, rather than aggressive, manner. D shared with us that he was facing another sentence in jail and it was just a matter of time before he would be caught. He seemed to want to spend as much time as he could with Sophie because he knew it wouldn’t last long.
After talking to us, D knew it was the right choice for Liliana, as hard as it was for him. It was a positive meeting. Chris and I felt like it was good for both of them to see us and hear about Liliana and be reminded in person how much we love her. We knew it was a matter of time before D went back to jail and that when that happened we would be entering the next phase of our journey.

And of course we got to meet Sophie for the first time. She is beautiful. She has dark hair and brown eyes. She is more petite than Liliana and so sweet.
We took a picture of our time at the restaurant and when Chris got home he made it the picture on his cell phone screen saver. (I have to admit; when I saw his phone I got jealous and asked him to put it on mine as well). Every time we made a call or checked the time, there was our sweet little Sophie.

SOPHIE’S JOURNEY PART 3

I would call this next phase “the silent months”. We knew J’s approximate due date but had no idea when the baby was born, if the baby was healthy, if it was a boy or girl. J dropped out of contact and all we could do was wait. Wait for her to call. Wait to hear what was going on. Ultimately wait on God.

God was very faithful to us during this time. Whenever we walk an unknown journey, he seems to give us “sign posts” along the way. They are just enough encouragement or hope for us to keep walking, even though it seems foolish when you consider the circumstances.

Our “sign posts” started coming. First there was a card from some of friends with a kind note and a check to go towards our adoption. Then it was an e-mail from a friend in another state who had a dream about our 2nd adoption and felt an overwhelming sense to pray and e-mail some Bible verses as an encouragement. Then came another money gift, more e-mails.. Little messages at the right time to show us that God was with us, even though all we could do was wait.

I held this Bible verse close to my heart during these months.

The LORD is the everlasting God,
the Creator of all the earth.
He never grows weak or weary.
No one can measure the depths of his understanding.
He gives power to the weak
and strength to the powerless.
Even youths will become weak and tired,
and young men will fall in exhaustion.
But those who trust in the LORD will find new strength.
They will soar high on wings like eagles.
They will run and not grow weary.
They will walk and not faint. (Is 40: 28b-31)

As I trusted God, new strength would be waiting for me. In fact after a few months had passed and we knew the baby was at least 2 -3 months old, we were given the option of putting in a request for another adoption and pursing a new avenue. We considered it, but we just couldn’t bring ourselves to go through with it. We knew in our hearts “baby sibling” (that is what we called him/her) was to be part of our family. God would help us to not grow weary or faint of heart if we waited on him and trusted. We determined not to give up on this child despite circumstances.

SOPHIE’S JOURNEY PART 2

Already our 2nd adoption was completely different than the 1st. With Liliana we had no idea she existed until she was 6 months old and we got the phone call about adopting her. We waited almost 3 years to be chosen to adopt and thought it was a closed door. We did all of our waiting on the front end, so when the time came to adopt her, things moved quickly.

Now, we were waiting and anticipating the pregnancy with J. The idea of being there when the baby arrived in the world was a new anticipation. The idea of Liliana playing with her sibling and their dynamic was another new dimension. But mostly was the fact that we had the full term of the pregnancy to pray for this child. I felt like that was going to be important in this child’s story.

I prayed the normal stuff any mom would pray- the child would be developing in a healthy way, safe delivery, and even over the formation of the baby’s personality and spiritual calling even in the womb. But there were moments the prayers would turn into something more.

I remember one afternoon in particular. I was folding laundry and felt this overwhelming sense to pray. Soon tears came and the next thing I knew I was weeping for this baby. I had no idea what was going on, but just allowed the prayers and tears to flow and knew I was doing something on a spiritual level that I couldn’t see with my own eyes.

I had actually learned that from our adoption with Liliana. Even though we had no idea that she existed, God did. At key times in her life, our prayers would intensify for her, even though we had no idea why. Once we met J and heard their story, I went back to my journal and saw the parallels of what I was praying and what was happening.

Liliana’s story also began with a time of prayer and fasting in our church. We were observing Lent and had 40 days for prayer and fasting in 2007. I very much wanted a baby and so that was my personal prayer focus. Later I found out that during that time is when Liliana was conceived. The time of her birth along with a few other intense moments of her life, God had her new mom praying.

I knew baby #2 needed extra prayers due to her unstable situation.
D and J had gotten back together and J couldn’t bring up adoption because D didn’t want that. She called our social worker about a month before delivery not knowing what to do. Carol assured her we were waiting and ready, but that she needed to talk to D. In the mean time Carol told us to go ahead and get our new home study done and start the paper work on our end. We stepped out in faith, trusting that soon this baby would be with us.

SOPHIE'S JOURNEY- PART 1

We are getting ready to leave today to get our new daughter and I wanted to blog about her. I will be adding parts as I have time to sit and write.


SOPHIE’S JOURNEY PART 1

For the past few years our church has engaged in times of prayer and fasting for an extended period of time. Each time we encourage people to have a certain personal focus and to ask God for something meaningful to you personally.

October 2009 we had a 21 day time of prayer and fasting. When I considered what I wanted my focus to be, immediately I thought I wanted to begin praying for a second child to adopt.

The 3rd day into my fast, I woke up in the middle of the night and I knew I needed to get up and pray and journal. All I could pray for was a sibling for Liliana. It was overwhelming. Later that afternoon I was out running errands when our social worker, Carol, called. Carol handled our first adoption with Liliana and she calls from time to time to check in. I remember sitting in the parking lot of Woodmans when she told me about J being pregnant again with Liliana’s full blooded sibling. She was scared and seriously considering abortion as her only option in this point of her life. Her boyfriend was in and out of jail and couldn’t offer support and she also had a son she was raising. She was overwhelmed and called Carol to ask if we would consider adopting this child too.

Normally the agency doesn’t call adoptive parents until the 3rd trimester because the girls have a lot to process and can change their minds. But Carol felt it was urgent to call us and that the only way J was going to go through with the pregnancy is if she had the assurance we would be there.

Of course I was blown away by the timing of it all. Not only would we have an opportunity to adopt again, but it would actually be her full blooded sibling. What are the odds of that happening.

Of course we said YES. Our journey of prayer and love began.

Catching up from last week...

Last week was Chris' birthday. He said it was a great birthday.. in the morning he took Liliana on a Daddy-Daughter date and then in the afternoon the two of us went on a date. Chris' love language is gifts. (from the book 5 Love Languages). I know that about him, but I forget how much it means to him until I actually see him with a gift. I bought him a special coffee machine that brews individual cups and he was the most excited person ever. He loved it and has been talking about it non stop for days. Seriously, he might have been more excited about it than Liliana was about her birthday gifts last month. It was fun to see.

We also went to our first family movie last week for a matinee. I don't think I have seen a movie at the theater for about 3 years. I had my bag loaded down with snacks to keep passing on to Liliana since she had never sat through a movie like that before. She was loving life. It was a fun family outing.

We had a conference in Milwaukee area over the weekend and then a very jam packed Sunday and Monday, so we are ready for our day off today.

We are about ready to have a blizzard hit Madison. I am excited! I love the snow and it is so fun when we get a large amount.
At this point in life we don't have to shovel driveways, due to where we live, and we have a hill outside our back door, so we can go snow shoeing. I'm excited to do some baking today, read, and hang out with my family. Here's to a relaxing day!

Let's Go on An Adventure

As a mom, I am quite thankful for fun words. You can make any ordinary event special with some creative vocabulary.

This past week was our week of "adventures". We pretended like we were on adventures each day. A trip to Woodmans grocery store takes on a whole new meaning when you add the word adventure to it. Liliana got to bring a little back pack to the store and help scope out things to buy. We even had a stop at the treat aisle to make the adventure complete.

I was feeling pretty good about my made up adventures and then we went on a tour of Epic software company with a friend of ours who works there. Talk about an adventure- the place was great. Each building is decorated in a different theme- Asia, Western, an Indiana Jones hallway, Safari,... it was an interior designers dream. The owners of Epic have a huge budget dedicated to cool decorations to make the work environment fun. We pretended to run away from the dragons and were going in the conference rooms trying to shoot them with our bow and arrow. Very fun.

I also converted half of our walk in closet into a little play area for Liliana. She loves going in there to play, so I decided to move our excess stuff out of the corner so she could set up a little area for her. She absolutely loves it and the adventures have continued.

Here's to a week of ordinary, but fun adventures. Dora would be proud!

Inner Fire Yoga

Our church is located next to a yoga studio and last weekend I finally ventured over with a friend to check it out. I was a little intimidated because it is a hot yoga studio and I had visions of walking into a sauna type atmosphere, barely able to breathe, sweating and holding funny poses.

It turned out not to be quite as intimidating as I thought. (although I did sweat and have to hold funny poses)
We have a 2 week pass for unlimited yoga, so my friend and I are trying out as many classes as we can. I'm interested in learning more about yoga and how to even incorporate some of the stretches at home.

Last night we were in this yin yoga class, which focuses on deep stretches. You hold poses for 1-2 minutes. Wow. I stretched muscles in my hip that have probably never been stretched in my entire life.

The instructor was great as he walked us through the poses. At the very end he encouraged us to come back for more classes. Then he made the statement, "Yoga three times a week is a lifestyle".

That statement struck me. Over the new year, I've been thinking about things in my life that I want to become more of a lifestyle.
The definition of a lifestyle is

a manner of living that reflects the person's values and attitudes.

Lifestyle changes come at different paces. In fact, most of my lifestyle changes have just been one small step in a direction. That step went well, so then came the next step. Before I knew it, my lifestyle was different in that area. It is really exciting to see change and growth happen at different paces. I think with that attitude, change is fun and freeing.

I don't know if yoga will be a lifestyle, but for now I am going to enjoy my unlimited pass and stretch in funny poses as much as I can!

Party Time

This past week was filled with CELEBRATION!

Tuesday Liilana turned 3. It is hard to believe she is that old already. I remember when I was younger people would say how much time flies and I thought it was a goofy phrase. Now I find myself feeling that way.

We had a fun time at the Kid's Museum, out to lunch and then snow shoeing. We bought Liliana some snow shoes for her b-day and she loved them. I'm so glad. I think snow shoeing is so fun. It's my new activity I have been getting into lately.



Then New Years Day we hosted an open house to watch the Rose Bowl. The Badgers were in the game. They lost, but it was still fun.


The next day we went to our friend Lily's birthday party at the bowling alley. Lily and Liliana share the exact same birthday. We just love Lily's family and always have a great time with them. It was the first time either girl bowled and they had a good time.

Christmas Morning

This was our first year to spend Christmas morning with just our family and we loved it. Don't get me wrong, we also enjoy being with our extended families, but it was great to have our own traditions and stay in our pajamas extra long.

We watched a video about Jesus being born, which of course led to acting out the story. All month Liliana puts her blanket over her head and pretends to be Mary and we take turns switching off as shepherds and angels. It's cute.

We opened gifts and then skyped Nana and Papa in TX to open gifts they sent.
One gift in particular was a Dora microphone that sings and glamour shoes. Oh my.. Liliana loved it!



We played, made a birthday cake for Jesus and had such a fun day.
We also started to make an igloo. We went out in the back yard area and started a mound of snow. We were going to let it freeze and then build on top of it a few more days before digging our entrance. So sad that the weather got warm for several days and our snow is all gone. I hope it snows again soon so we can try again!