Update

Whew!  Where to start?  I'm ready for life to slow down a little bit.  Unfortunately, the older I get the faster it speeds up.  I wanted to take a minute to update you on several things I've been writing about.  First off-I survived my cleanse!!!! Yes!  I had great results with it.  I definitely felt like it did a great job of cleaning out my body.  After about three days the headaches went away and I haven't had one since.  I lost about 8 lbs. in two weeks.  So, I am now only about 9 lbs. away from my goal weight.  I feel really great right now so I'm happy whatever happens from this point.  Unless of course I gain the weight back :(.  I am still focused on eating healthy and of course exercising.  I'm an exercise guru! 

I am progressing on getting through all the paperwork for the adoption.  I just about had everything filled out and then I got in touch with the agency we're hopefully going to go through in Florida and got a bunch more paperwork for their application process.  I've been told that you don't go through morning sickness with adoption, you just go through hand cramps and paper cuts.  Our church has an adoption support group that meets once every month.  Derek and I attended one last weekend.  It was so wonderful to meet with other parents that have been through the process or are going through it right now as well.  I love that our church is so supportive of adoption and the families involved.  We have  started on some fund raising ideas.  They've been in the works, but we're getting some definite plans put together.  Our two big fundraisers will be a garage sale and a silent auction.  We are getting a lot of people who are donating to these which is such a blessing.  So to all of you helping, a very big heartfelt thank you!  We're waiting until the weather warms up to do the garage sale.   Hopefully we will be able to do the silent auction here shortly.  Other ideas we're tossing around are a t-shirt sale and coffee sale. There are a lot of great companies out there that donate a certain portion of their sales to couples adopting.  The t-shirt fundraiser we're looking at works in conjunction with Steven Curtis Chapman's adoption foundation.  They set you up a website where you can sell certain t-shirts and a portion of the profits go to you.  So, we're looking into that one as well as one that is basically the same idea, but it is coffee.  Now I'm not a coffee lover at all, but this company is supposed to have really good coffee.  All natural, healthy, etc.  That's all I know.  Like I said, I'm not a coffee fan, so I'm taking other people's word for it. :)  Both Derek and I are getting more excited the farther we get.  We're getting a glimpse of how God will provide the funds for it. 

We're in a Bible study right now that deals with people's fears.  It has been such a great thing for both of us.  I know that everyone struggles with fears and doubts.  It's hard to live in a fallen world and not have them.  Derek and I have been so fearful over the last three years of owning our own practice; constantly wondering where the money to pay the bills was going to come from, etc.  God has always provided and we are so thankful for that.  The business has grown and is doing much better.  Instead of looking back and realizing how blessed we are, it's all too easy to get caught up in the present and be consumed by fear for what we're currently going through.  Derek and I are working really hard at turning that fear over to God and trusting him.  Obviously our biggest fear right now is the funds for the adoption.  As I said though, we are realizing how this will become a possibility and it's very exciting!  I think we need to remember too that when we step out in faith to do what God has called us to do, we just have to trust.  We can give our fear and worry back to God because it's not our concern.  Our job is to do what he's told us to do.  I like how our Bible study teacher put it.  He said, "If God is in the ship, it's not going to sink."

What have you done with my daughter?

It seems like the word of advice you always hear about your children is that they're going through a stage.  Don't worry it's just the stage they're in.  After awhile you just start to think that they must always be in a stage because that's all you hear.  I understand what people are trying to say.  I've even said it, but I would really like my children to hit the stage where they are perfect, do what they're told, eat what you make them, and tell you how wonderful you are!  What!!!! That stage doesn't exist?!!  Well, one can always hope I guess.

My tirade comes from an episode I had with my daughter this last Saturday.  We haven't been getting along the greatest lately.  We have a big conflict in personalities.  No, it's not what you're thinking.  We don't have similar personalities.  She takes after my husband who has that leader personality with a quick temper.  My daughter and I only share a strong sense of stubborness.  Now, I understand that she perceives the world differently than I do and she's getting to the age where she wants a certain amount of independence.  Her idea of that is drastically different from mine and what is appropriate for a 5 year old!  Anyway, so as I said we've been knocking heads a lot.  I wanted to take her on Saturday and have a girl's day to do something fun; maybe bust through our block right now.  You see our temperments are different but our love languages are exactly the same.  We love to do things for people and we love gifts.  So, I planned to take her and get her hair cut, Then take her to buy a cute pair of boots that she could wear to school that would keep her feet and legs warm, but were not a clunky pair of snow boots.  Katy was completely on board with girl's day.  She was so excited!

Phase one on Saturday:  Get hair cut!
This went spledidly.  The lady who cut her hair was so nice.  She shampooed her hair, cut and styled it.  Then she got a sucker (probably Katy's favorite part).  Katy was grinning from ear to ear when we left.  Off to a successful day!

Phase two:  Find a pair of boots!
Well, this stage started having problems from the get go.  First store, all out of boots.  Next stop Payless.  We found some boots.  Thought things were looking up.  Katy wasn't in love with the boots. So, I decide to take her down and try Target.  Along the way we passed Footlocker and I got the brilliant idea to stop in there.  Number one problem, way too expensive of shoes for kids!!!  They had some great boots but not at a price I would pay.  Katy did find a pair of boots she fell in love with there.  They were overpriced and had a huge heel on them!  We had apparently come looking for different kinds of boots.  I tried reasoning with her.  She needed a comfortable pair she could run around and play in, they needed to be warm...  All reasoning was rejected.  I was finally able to convince her that we could look at another store.  Target had no boots in her size.  Frustration and aggrevation are really starting to kick in at this point.  In my opinon  there was only one thing to do.  Go back to Payless and get the pair I thought would work.  I remember when she was little and I could just pick out her clothes and shoes.  Does that work now.  Oh no!  She lets me take her back to Payless but we can't agree on a pair of boots.  She wants flashy and not functional.  I want cute but sensible.  Well, we ended up walking out without any boots.  I know she was disappointed, I was too.  The day had not gone as planned.  When she found out we were going to go home without any boots it got ugly quick.  We were crossing the crosswalk to our car and she just started screaming and kicking.  I had to pick her up and drag her kicking and screaming to the car.  I was absolutely horrified!!!  My kids have never thrown tantrums!  All I could think is, "who is this child and what did she do with my daughter?"  The tantrum continued all the way home.  All I could think was get home before I did something I would regret.  Fortunately daddy was home and was able to deal with her.  Let's just say she has been on much better behavior ever since thankfully.

 

I really wish that children came with a manual.  I think every parent should be warned before having children that insanity is 99.9% guaranteed after having children.  The thing I hang onto is that with every stage my children go through there are things I hate, but there are things that I just love and adore.  Just when I get sad about my kids passing a stage I loved, they do something new and wonderful that just leaves me amazed.  As our children get older not only are they learning about themselves and who they are, but we as parents are learning the same thing about ourselves.  I think it's such a great picture of what we do with God.  It amazes me how God in his inifinite wisdom has given us different kinds of relationships to help us learn about our relationship with him.  God is our parent that we are constantly pushing and challenging.  Yes, we even throw temper tantrums sometimes.  Fortunately, God is a much better parent than we will ever be.  He meets us with love and forgiveness and nudges us back on the right path.  That's not to say that we don't have to deal with the consequences of our actions, but God gets us back on the right path.  As I deal with my daughter and this difficult phase of life right now with her, I am going to try and react as God would.  To love her and guide her.  To be a good example of Christ and His love.  Thankfully, she's really cute!

Hang on for the ride!

Derek and I went in for our adoption interview yesterday.  I'm not sure why it's called an interview.  There wasn't much question and answer going on.  It was more of you need to fill this out and this and this and this and this and this......  I think you get my point.  Needless to say I'm scheduling this whole weekend for filling out paperwork.  The things that they think of are insane!!! They definitely cover all their bases that's for sure.  I think some of the more interesting and definitely surprising to me were having to have all the vaccination records for our pets turned in and the letter from Katy's teacher that states that she's doing well in school and can handle going through the adoption.  Now, don't get me wrong I don't mean to sound like they weren't friendly and informative because our case worker Tammie is incredibly nice.  It was just incredibly overwhelming the amount of stuff that got thrown at us in an hour's time.  I think even more daunting was the money involved.  Adoption agencies are pretty good about listing out all the major fees.  It's all the little costs that you find out about as you go along.  So many of the forms I'm filling out this weekend have fees attached to them.  It probably adds close to another $1,000 onto the total.  It was actually kind of funny watching Derek's face during the interview.  His eyes just got bigger and bigger!  I was afraid that he was going to have a stroke there for a little bit. 

I think the thing that makes it the most overwhelming is knowing that this is just the beginning.  These are just the forms necessary for starting the homestudy.  I actually have a hard time describing the anxiety and pressure I felt yesterday.  I just walked out and in my mind I was talking to God (okay maybe talking isn't the right word) and wondering if we were doing the right thing.  I mean this isn't going to be easy.  It's impossible to look at the whole process and not freak out.  It's really just completely overwhelming.  This morning I just spent time listening to my favorite Christian songs and opened my heart to God.  I really, really want to adopt a child and I have no idea how that is going to happen.  If we had to have all the money and everything done today it just wouldn't happen.  However, I know that I serve a loving, powerful God.  I think sometimes God gives us a desire to do something impossible just so that He can show up and do something amazing.  I have seen Him perform miracles.  I have a beautiful, healthy niece that was a medical impossibility.  She is my sister's miracle. 

So, I am going to jump on board with this.  I'm going to take it one form at a time and watch God do amazing things in this process.  I think the pastor at our church said it best when he was talking about us blessings others.  He said that it's kind of like having a shovel and shoveling out blessings onto others.  Whether that's time, money, etc.  Fortunately for us, God shovels them right back, He just has a much bigger shovel!

Cleansing!

This is the time of year when everyone is coming up with their New Year's Resolutions.  The standard and typical resolution is losing weight.  I have always hated that resolution!!!  It's always vague and most people never end up losing any weight.  I have always avoided that resolution just because it's the norm.  My resolution this year was to spend more time with my kids and take the time to relax more often.  I find myself running around like a chicken with its head cut off all the time.  I am happy to say that I have been doing better with both my goals this year.  I'm almost embarrassed to admit it though, but I have a secret resolution as well.  Yes, you guessed it, I want to lose 15 lbs. 

Weight is something I have struggled with my whole life.  I have reached my ideal weight three times in my life, but have never been able to keep the weight off permanently.  My first time I was in highschool, playing sports and working out like crazy.  Of course at that time I  had no idea how to go about it in a healthy way.  Fortunately, I didn't resort to an eating disorder but I know I did damage to my body with as crazy as I was working out.  Not to mention, not knowing how to lift weights properly.  Alas, the freshman 20 crept up on me in college and I was back to being overweight.  It wasn't until my third year in college when I was playing on the softball team that I really started trying to get the weight off again.  It also helped that I was engaged and wanted to look great for my wedding!  Since then it has been a constant battle of ups and downs with weight.  Ever since having my son Christian I have struggled to even get close to my goal weight.  I have tried fad diets, eating right, working out, all to no avail.  Luckily, I have a fantastic chiropractor for a husband and through his help and some of his colleagues I have started to get a handle on my body's health issues.  So, I have decided the time is right to again try and get my weight down. 

Now, a lot of people look at me and don't think I'm that overweight.  However, I do have about 15 lbs. that needs to come off.  I can't imagine how much better my body will feel once I lose some of that weight.  I am not referring at all to the BMI when I talk about weight.  I do not believe that it is very accurate because it lumps everyone into the same categories and does not take into account all the differences among people, such as bigger bones, etc.  According to the BMI, the maximum I should weigh before being overweight is 159 lbs.  Now that's all well and good, but the lightest I have ever been is 148 lbs. and I was in peak condition.  There is no possible way that I could have gone lower than that without some repercussions along the way.    What is my goal weight this time you ask?  Well, I am shooting for 155 lbs.  As I type that I wonder how overly optimistic I'm being.  It's easy to say that I would be happy at 160-165lbs, but I want to push for something more. 

I have kick started my weight loss goal with the Nulean cleanse.  What is a cleanse?  Well, it's a program that most natural healthcare doctors carry.  There are many different protocols and products out there, but the main idea of a cleanse is to clean the body out of toxins that have built up from chemicals we've been exposed to in our food, environment, hair products, and so on.  It helps clean out toxins from smoking and drinking as well.  These toxins can make it hard for our body to process food properly which in turn makes it hard for our body to be able to move and flush out fats in our body resulting in us not being able to lose weight.  I also love cleanses because they help with food addiction.  I think one of the biggest obstacles to losing weight is the cravings we have.  Now, I'm not saying you won't have cravings while on the cleanse, the opposite in fact, but if you can push through, it helps get you on the right track to eating properly minus the food addictions.  It takes 21 days to break an addiction which is why I recommend cleanses that last at least that long.   There are some things to be prepared for when on a cleanse.  The toxic headaches are horrible.  I have to admit that for the last two days I have had a horrible headache!!  At the same time though I know that toxins are getting out!  (Keep in mind that these headaches don't happen to everyone.  For instance, Derek is also doing the cleanse and he hasn't had any headaches.) Today I am feeling much better.  I haven't had a headache at all, which for me is rare.  I typically have headaches everyday.  I have also lost 4 lbs. in two days of being on the cleanse! 

I think it's really important to analyze why we want to lose weight before we just jump into it.  I think people get into trouble with their goals when their purpose is vague or superficial.  It's easy to say I want to lose weight so I can be skinny.  Well, I hate to tell you but there are a lot of skinny people in this world that are not healthy.  Now, don't get me wrong, I don't know any woman out there that doesn't want to be skinny and beautiful, myself included.  I just think that if that's the only reason you're trying to lose weight it will be hard to achieve.  My personal goal is to be healthy.  Am I healthy now?  Absolutely!  I eat right, I exercise, but I have this pesky extra weight that hurts my joints.  I notice this more now that I'm getting older.  Notice I didn't say I'm old, but as I have gotten older I notice that my joints ache more and I don't recover as quickly from injuries, sickness, etc. 

So to those of you looking to lose weight this year, I wish you the best.  Set achievable goals and remember that being healthy is the most important thing.   There are no quick fixes for being overweight.  Just commitment to eating healthy and exercising. 

Hmmm?

I have to start by writing a disclaimer here.  I was fortunate to have been born into a family where there are many gifted and talented writers.  I think, however, that the writing gene skipped me.  So, I want to start by letting you know that you won't find any works of art here, but I did want to start a site so that our friends and family could keep up on what's going on in our lives.  Especially now that we have started the adoption process.  As I sit here I remember all the times that I tried journaling growing up.  I would stare at the pages and try to think of something amazing or inspiring to write.  Alas, nothing ever seemed to happen!  So, I am not going to try and come up with amazing ideas to regale you all with.  I simply will be posting events and adventures that our family continually find ourselves a part of. 

Many of you have been curious as to why we decided we wanted to adopt a child.  The most frequently heard questions is, "Can you not have anymore children of your own?"  There is a very common misconception that you can or should only adopt if you can't have your own children.  Derek and I have been fortunate to have two perfectly healthy wild animals of our own  :).  Of course the answer to the questions is, "Yes of course we can still have our own children, but we have a burning desire to take a child in that doesn't have a loving, stable home; to take care of the orphan."  It is not a decision that we came to lightly.  Adoption has been something I am passionate about for a very long time.  Derek, on the other hand, was not quite as adament as I am about it.  Over the years as we have discussed it and tossed the idea around, Derek's desire to adopt has grown.  And in response to what you're all thinking, no I did not nag and coerce him into it!  I have watched Derek over the last five years with our children grow into one of the most loving dads there is.  I think he puts it most eloquently when he describes why he wants to adopt.  He was sitting and watching our children and he said, "Our children have been blessed with parents who love them, they never have to worry about food or clothing.  They have a stable home.  Why would I not want to provide that for a child who doesn't have that or could grow up not having that? "  We were sitting in our new church (story for another time)  and both felt like God was calling us to adopt.  It was crazy because the business wasn't performing quite as hoped at the time.  Money was incredibly tight and here God is saying it's time to adopt.  What????  So, in a leap of faith we decided to trust that if this is something that God wants us to do we wouldn't limit God and his awesome power.  We have been approved by one of our adoption agencies and will be starting our home study hopefully here in the near future.  Already it has been an incredibly anxiety producing experience.  As we sit and think about all the expenses and fees lining up we sit and wonder what we've gotten ourselves into.  Having one of our children would be a lot less expensive!  But, we are continuing to trust and believe that God has something wonderful in store for us.  I am already anxiously awaiting the arrival of our daughter.  Yes, Katy has requested she get a sister. 

I will keep you up to date as we get information and on any fundraising ideas I can come up with.  Thanks for taking the time to stop by!