Announcement.....

Our last interview is scheduled for Friday, February 4th!!!! This is when our case worker will visit our home. After this visit, she has 30 days to write up our home study for approval. Hopefully, we will be approved by the beginning of March! Spring baby maybe???? It's all becoming more real - and a little scary, if ya wanna know! ; )

Plate Spinning

Well, I have some answers to the question(s) I posed in my post about the frustrations of motherhood. No one really tried to chime in with an answer, but several people responded letting me know that they "feel it". That was incredibly more encouraging than it would have been to receive a lot of comments containing practical advice regarding housekeeping and mothering. But, in the midst of my pondering/pity party, I believe the Lord used things my friends said, songs I've listened to, reminders of "epiphanies" I've had in the past, and scripture to bring me clarity.

Now that I'm a blogger, I think in blog posts. For example, when something happens, or especially when I stumble upon a discovery, I automatically see it in "blog" form. Kind of an altered reality. It's weird. Anyway, as I've processed this motherhood thing, the "answers" that have recently come my way fit neatly into a three (maybe four) part series of posts, each with a corresponding scripture and source. Perfect. That's how I like it. ; ) I hope you are encouraged as I have been.

Some of you have already heard my plate spinning analogy. Actually, I first heard this analogy from my sister in law, but I stole and embellished it! : ) Goes like this...... You know how a plate spinner's job is to keep a bunch of breakable plates spinning on tall sticks? The goal is to keep them spinning so that none fall, right? And, when one starts to wobble the plate spinner goes to that plate and gives it a spin. But, when he does that another plate starts to wobble, and so on.....(Translation, in case you don't follow... You try to cook a healthy meal for your family, but yell at your kids who are in the kitchen bugging you while you cook. And, as you are kneeling down in the floor to apologize to the three year old for bringing him to tears with your raised voice, dinner burns! You take everyone out to Chick-fil-A to save your sanity, which is out of budget.)

THAT is exactly what I was describing in my post about motherhood. That's what it can feel like to be a mother (or anyone who has a lot of people depending upon her, for that matter.) But, consider this - what if the goal of the plate spinner would be different?

What if the plate spinner was given a variety of plates - including some that were ordinary (from Goodwill, let's say) and some that were precious antique fine china, and all varieties in between. And, what if it was EXPECTED that the plate spinner would drop some plates? And, every time a plate fell he would be handed another (unspecified) plate to start. What if the goal was not to make sure ALL the plates stayed spinning but that he would choose precisely WHICH plates were most valuable and needed his attention at the moment. What if the goal was to keep the precious plates spinning, letting the other plates go?

See? That changes everything, doesn't it? I know that these are some precious "plates" in my life - playing trains with Sam, doing projects with Zach, patiently correcting my kids, being helpful to my husband, going on dates with him, exercising, and having coffee with friends. Then, there are "paper plates" in my life, that I know I should decisively let fall (retrieving the dust bunnies from underneath my bed - does anyone do that?) The problem is, there are some plates that "morph." For example, the laundry/dishes/house is never a precious plate, really, but is an ordinary plate that sometimes holds more value and needs my full attention, because as I am keeping that plate in its course, my precious plates (i.e. family) are also being spun well because they are interconnected. (i.e. clean laundry/dishes/house = a home that is more peaceful and pleasant.) But, other times those plates need to be let go. It takes a lot of wisdom.

Overall, though, it is encouraging just to recognize that all plates (i.e. responsibilities, commitments, tasks, etc) don't carry the same value. And that my task is not to keep them all spinning (which is impossible), but to exercise wisdom in devoting the proper time and energy to the precious plates. AND COMPLETELY RELEASING THE PLATES THAT I MUST LET GO OF (that's where I struggle the most). I believe that God provides this wisdom to all who seek it:

Psalm 90:12-13

"So teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom. Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love that we may rejoice and be glad all our days."

That second part, I believe, holds the secret to how we fulfill this challenge in the way God intends - with joy. Instead of a plate spinner who is tense, rigid and exhausted, I imagine that the Lord intends for us to spin our plates with ease and pleasure. Less of a workout and more of a dance!

And that, my fellow plate spinners, will be the topic of "part 2" of this series entitled - "Only One Thing is Needed." Because I've learned (but often forget) that being in close communion with God is the only plate that always holds a priceless value!

$$ Tuesday's Big Tally $$

I'll just go ahead and let the cat out of the bag - we have raised $7,642 for our adoption in three months!!! Can you believe it? We are overwhelmed at the support we have received, certainly through the money given, but mostly through people's attitudes about our adoption. During every fundraising project, people (more than we can count) absolutely TOOK IT ON! It seems like everywhere we go people are asking us about the adoption and wanting to know how it is going, along with our fundraising efforts. It really is amazing. Thank you, everyone who is reading, for joining us in our journey!

I have added our fundraising progress to the "Timeline" sidebar, so people can see exactly how much we have raised in each area. I hope this will encourage those of you who are adopting (or considering it) when you see actual numbers. For example, I NEVER imagined that we would raise $1300 selling Ugandan necklaces through 147 Million Orphans. We had necklaces coming out of our ears for several weeks, but it was SO worth it. Here's a cute picture of the boys with a bunch of necklaces (and donning their new 147 Million Orphan t-shirts, which they LOVE)....

Also, I can't stress enough how generous people have been in giving gifts. Sometimes people would write their check for extra when they would buy a necklace or some days we will just receive a random check in the mail. And, we haven't asked for any of it! I say that to encourage anyone who is considering adoption and intimidated by the cost. People are eager to support adoption by giving money. And, I want to encourage those of you who are giving to keep giving. It really makes all the difference to the family who is embarking on this journey. It has made us feel like we are not alone.

We have a goal of still raising around $5,400. Our desire is to raise $13,000 because that is what we will receive back in tax credits next year. Out of that money, we plan to give the amount we made through fundraising to our church's adoption fund. There are several families desiring to adopt in our church and it would be awesome to see all that money being used again and again for adoption. Hopefully, Congress will pass the adoption tax credit again this year. As it stands, the tax credit will expire at the end of this year, so we have to finalize our adoption by the end of the year to receive the tax credit at all if they don't extend it. That means we must get our baby by this June! (There is a six month waiting period before you can finalize.) We encourage all of you to write your U.S. Congressmen and request that the Adoption Tax Credit be approved indefinitely.

Many of you have asked about our timeline - we are waiting. Patiently and anxiously waiting. We have done all our paperwork and are waiting for our case worker to come visit our home and submit our home study. Then, we will be approved and will start waiting again - for a birth mother to choose our family. We have been in a holding pattern since the first of November because of some changes at our agency, which has been a little frustrating, I'll admit. But, we know God is in control of the details and will make sure our child comes to us at the right time. Personally, I'm hoping for a spring baby! : ) Never had one of those before!!!

I'll have some more pictures to share soon of our boys' new room! The big brothers got to move upstairs to make room for the baby downstairs. We went all out and made the room makeover their big Christmas present. It looks great. Next, we'll be putting up a baby bed. Oh my!