Ready for an emotional one? It was June. The summer garden was starting to produce; the heat starting to become more oppressive by the day, when I get an email from my aunt who lives about 800 miles away. Her daughter has three children in foster care, and the social workers are talking about taking them away permanently. The state wants to know if anyone in the family would like to take them in to their home. We've been through this before with her first child. To say the least, it was ugly, lots of hurt feelings and broken relationships. I was glad to be 800 miles from the epicenter of it all, a bystander, not required to choose sides...Here we stand again though, this time, I'm in a different place in my life. I have a child close in age to the kids. I'm in a stable relationship. I'm financially secure. And the question is being asked...Will you?
After a much too brief discussion with my husband, who I was positive would say no, we agreed to take the two little girls. All this was dependent on the court's decision to end my cousin's parental rights. The little boy would go with his uncle. We just don't have room. We have 2 adult children, one living with us, one in college, and a little girl.
At heart, I'm a planner, so my first response was, "We need bunk beds! We need money to travel 800 miles to get our new girls! We need to save all of E's clothes that she grows out of for the little one. What am I going to do about homeschooling? What about my job? Taking one little girl to work at the office is one thing, but 3? My car! How am I going to fit 3 car seats in the back of my car??? Three teenage girls? We need a gun! College??? Weddings?" LOL I know, I totally get ahead of myself sometimes. Thankfully, I have a wonderful, procrastinating and often pessimistic husband to keep me grounded. While I'm shopping for bunk beds online, he's certain of God's provision and the government agencies' lack of organization to get any thing done in a speedy manner.
Fast forward to 3 weeks ago, God shows Himself in the circumstances: 1)I got a letter from an organization that I had worked for over the summer that was unable to pay me. The letter said that they knew that they owed me over $1000 and that they would be paying me by November 15. Thank you God! Won't that be a wonderful Christmas bonus? Yeah, I think God had other plans, because a few days later, 2) I got a call from my aunt. Social Services wants my information, so they can start doing background checks. They have a court date and hope to be ready to be able to give us the kids in December. There is still the possibility that another chance will be given to the mom, but right now it isn't looking good for her. 3)My brother, Mike, was given a set of bunk beds. He didn't know what to do with them, but decided to keep them in case someone needed them. Isn't it amazing how God works?
My husband, the pessimist, is afraid that I'm getting too excited, that I'm going to have my heart broken if this doesn't happen. He doesn't know that if this doesn't work out, I'm thinking we should go through the foster care classes and look for other little girls that need a home. Honestly, I will be terribly devastated if something happens and we can't have them. I know my aunt is grieving right now with the possibility of having 2 grand daughters move 800 miles away. I feel for her. I can't imagine losing my child, but my heart is already in love with two little girls that I have never even met. I always thought that E would be my one and only. I thought God was done with me. Now He's opened up this possibility in my heart, and I'm afraid to believe that it could be real. That I could be mama to three little girls! Please God let the answers come quickly...I don't know if I can stand waiting!
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Adventures in Booga Booga Land - Volume 1 (DVD)
The introduction episode introduces us to the Marty the monkey and Gerard the Giraffe. Each adventure relates to the parables of Jesus. Episode 1 conveys the parable of The Workers in the Vineyard with its story of how Marty and Gerard get a job and learns that the boss, Stan, can be generous to others who don't deserve it. Episodes 2 portrays Marty and Gerard as the Wise and Foolish Builders. The final episode, The Lamp under The Bowl, features our heroes building a lighthouse and keeping it lit. These stories are appropriate for early elementary aged children.
I watched the DVD with my 4 year old daughter. Personally, it lacked substance for me, but she loved it. The animation and silly situational comedy reminded me of several cartoons that come on the kids channels that contain such questionable material...think cellulose in pants. There were instances of minor violence, Marty's improper use of power tools and Gerard's using dynamite to explode the rocks, but over all it was nothing compared to what is found on TV. I didn't find it offensive, but then I don't leave power tools laying around for my daughter to find.
The lighthouse episode totally lost me. It was unclear what the light was that Marty and Gerard were catching in the bottles that eventually provided light for the lighthouse.
Overall, my child loved it. She watched it over and over again which is honestly the true test of a good kids DVD.
I was provided this DVD for free in exchange for my review through the Thomas Nelson Booksneeze program.
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Roasted Vegetables...my version
Had someone told me that I was going to be loving eggplant, mushrooms, zucchini and squash this time last year, I would have laughed at them. But one of the advantages of being on WW's is that you learn to try new foods that you would have thumbed your nose at before.
While shopping at one of my favorite health food stores, I decided to try something new, their Roasted Veggie Sandwich with Havarti. Being the good WWer that I am, I quizzed the lady at the counter about the contents of the sandwich. Mayo? No, Veginaise. How much? 1 teaspoon or less. Oil? A small amount of olive oil to roast the vegetables. How much cheese? one slice. All the while I'm calculating points in my head...Bread 3, Cheese 2-3, Veginaise 1, veggies 1. The sandwich was excellent! So much so, that the next time I was in the store I saw that they sell just the veggies all roasted up by the pound! I contemplated buying some until I saw the price $8/lb!! Wow! So, I decided that I would attempt making my own. This is what I came up with: Yummy!
Roasted Veggies
| POINTS® Value: 1 Servings: 5 Preparation Time: 20 min Cooking Time: 60 min Level of Difficulty: Easy Course: side dishes | Add and subtract vegetables based on your personal taste. The balsamic vinegar adds a sweet and tangy note to the roasted vegetables. A serving is about 1 cup. |
Ingredients
 | 3 cup(s) cooked eggplant |
| | 1 cup(s) cooked zucchini |
| | 1 cup(s) cooked summer squash |
| | 1 item(s) bell pepper(s), chopped |
| | 1 cup(s) cooked onions |
| 1 Tbsp olive oil | |
| | 1 cup(s) cooked mushroom pieces |
| 1/3 cup(s) balsamic vinegar | |
| 1 tsp table salt | |
| 1 tsp black pepper | |
| | 1 cup(s) cooked chayote fruit |
Instructions
toss all veggies in vinegar and oil. Salt and pepper to taste. Roast covered at 350 in a 9x13 pan for one hour or until veggies are fork tender and onions are fully cooked.
Serve hot or cold.
This can also be made into a sandwich on whole wheat bread and Havarti cheese.
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