Thankful List for September: -a big month for positive adoption news after months and months of hiccups and delays -Pre-approval from China received -documents back from Houston in a week and a half... this was such an answer to prayer after an expired document and after Hurricane Harvey hit Houston we were told to expect this to take some considerable time. -our dossier (6 months of paperwork gathering, notarizing, certifying and authenticating with multiple hiccups) finally finished and in the mail to our agency and a trip to Six Flags to celebrate -video of our boy running around his orphanage and singing... this boy has a BIG personality And a few random things that have nothing to do with adoption: -celebrating Jubilee, an awesome Ninja Warrior birthday party, and kids getting out of their comfort zone -the Gills always opening their home for Tuck to watch Auburn games (and for Libby to play Barbies) -the constant rock trading between neighborhood kids -Urban Air with the Sharp boys -finally getting around to painting a dresser and a desk (and unfortunately a patio... but super thankful for goof off!) -Libby submitting art work to an exhibit and winning Best Still Life for youth... her excitement over the entire thing was so much fun to experience -a brother fixing his sister's hair -Lego building -Tuck's 10th birthday- a special trip to watch the Astros versus Rangers and a ball thrown straight to him by Elvis Andrus, a Harry Potter party, and lots of celebrating because you only turn a decade once. -Bible Drill -pizza making
-Library fun -MSU tailgates
0 Comments
Thankful List for August: -getting to meet baby Hannah (and celebrate her arrival at a shower) -frustrating news about expired documents and a missing document with no timeline -but then...finally a document received after 7.5 months of waiting for it.... huge step!!! -sharing our excitement with family and friend -our amazing village who walk us through this journey And a few random things that have nothing to do with adoption: -Tuck got to do Lego Camp with Luke -summer means lots of time together and lots of time with friends -it also means lots of time for reading, relaxing, creating, imagining, playing with toys that have been forgotten -an afternoon at Castaway Cove and how appreciative our kids were for this little outing -glow in the dark mini golf the day before school -meet the teacher -2nd and 4th graders- a great first day of school -finishing my quilting class! -ministry: kids ministry, Church Without Walls, college students are back! "Your soul hungers for truth. Don't starve it of good news. Preach the Gospel to yourself every single day." -John Piper
Thankful List for July: -month 6 of waiting on paperwork and new "delays"...thankful we do not wait without His presense -lots of adoption changes made by China affecting so many families. We are thankful that the changes didn't impact us but grieved for the many adoptive parents and children it does/will impact. -more adoption steps completed on our end -Hannah is officially the Padilla's forever!! -“When [our plans] are interrupted, His are not. His plans are proceeding exactly as scheduled, moving us always (including those minutes or hours or years which seem most useless or wasted or unendurable).” -"God's grace calls you to suffer and it calls you to wait, but it never calls you to stand in your own strength or to stand alone." Paul Tripp And a few random things that have nothing to do with adoption: -our summer road trip continued: time in Huntsville with Ben's family, animal safari for the kids, celebrating Memaw's birthday, finally getting to meet baby Abby, time on beautiful Green Mountain Nature Trail, Lowe Mill, and swimming. -on to Nashville: lots of time with my family, walking around the Opryland hotel, Loveless Cafe, downtown Nashville, yummy popsicles, go-cart rides, day on the lake, amazing neighborhood fireworks, and the science museum. -Mine and Ben's trip to Hot Springs, Arkansas- visiting the historic bath houses, the beautiful Andrews Chapel, staying in the historic Williams House Inn, the Mountain Tower, and delicious local food. -kids enjoying a week visiting grandparents in North Carolina and Georgia *don't worry- they didn't actually watch Guardians of the Galaxy -weekend with my mom when she brought the kids back -new bunk beds and a shelf to make space for Zane. Tuck's reaction when he came home to his new room "I LOVE it! Its like Fixer Upper came while I was gone!". -watching him and Ben put together the trundle -the Cash's are back in the United States!! -one last dinner and evening with our dear friends, the Weavers, before they left -Father/daughter date to Chick fil A's princess night and mother/son date night with dinner out -children's ministry- parent meeting/training, children making cookies for CPS, and preteen camp -2nd quilting class -summer fun at home "But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ." Philippians 3:7
June Thankful List -another month still waiting on paperwork for Zane... not easy to be thankful for the waiting but I can choose to be thankful for the God who is in control of the wait. -more t-shirts sold -"The trials in our lives exist not because He has forgotten us, but because He remembers us, and is changing us by His grace. When you remember that, you can have joy in the middle of what in uncomfortable." -Paul Tripp -celebrating Jay and Heather's wedding! -boys trip to Rangers/Astros game -Libby art camp and nature camp -Cook's over for dinner -Weaver's over for dinner -a hunt for a lost tooth -lots and lots of time with friends and neighbors -FaithKidZ week... so many kids, so many volunteers who gave them their time to love and teach them -a sweet, sweet visit with our dear friends the Withers- so thankful for the time we got with them -preteens on mission... what a joy to watch them show up to serve -my first quilting class -so much time just simply enjoying the benefits of slow summer days -finishing our 2nd Whole30 -and the beginning of our summer road trip adventure... a brief stop in Birmingham to show our kids the where we once lived and then on to Huntsville “When you don’t know what to do next, just do the thing in front of you.” -Elisabeth Elliot
April and May Thankful List April: -an anonymous donor leaving $1,000 in our mailbox... hopefully you will read this and know our overwhelming gratitude -Zane celebrated his 5th birthday -Leticia always timely phone calls -we started selling t-shirts to bring him home May: -the piece of paper we are waiting for in China moved one step forward -we sold over 200 shirts -between the t-shirt profits and the "extra" that so many gave and a few people that just gave- we made over $5,000!!! Thank you, thank you everyone. -the star magnets the kids made to go with the shirts -painting party fundraiser at Our Redeemer Lutheran Church- a huge success -seeing people wearing their shirts -a special thanks to Lauren Welch and her constant emails and prayers and checking in and texts of encouragement specifically the last two months... you are a faithful prayer warrior friend and I am grateful -the last two months of waiting have been especially tough for me and there are times where I feel overwhelmed with sadness and frustration that we are here in this place of waiting on another country to move again. Trying to choose gratitude in the midst of circumstances that are way out of my control, trying to trust His plan when the wait seems endless, trying to believe in His sovereignty when I feel overwhelmed by uncertainty... He is teaching me to want His plans more than I want mine- it is not easy. But I am grateful to have something to hope for. "Faith is living in light of what God has said, resting in what He has done, and entrusting the future to His care." -Tim Keller And a few random things that have nothing to do with adoption: April: -Kid's performing with Stix N Tones on Palm Sunday -getting to meet the Bullions at Lake Arrowhead State Park on Good Friday -Sarah's bridal shower and Libby winning the toilet paper dress award -Bike rides with Tuck -kids who love to read -getting to celebrate lots of things in April: Beca's birthday bash, taking Charlotte out for lunch on her birthday, celebrating Church without Walls 5th anniversary, and celebrating our April birthday boys (Ben and Zane). -And, of course, Easter celebrations... He is Risen! -fun visit with Nana and Papa -Libby's gymnastics lessons came to an end... she enjoyed them and her teacher -Tuck's baseball season began -Libby's 1st grade program... and she remembered her line! -package from Mimi and Pops -Norville girls coming over May: -swimming lessons for Libby- she sure loved them -a significant water leak when Ben was not home and the way the kids jumped to clean it up... thankful it wasn't worse -listening to Ben and students share about the successful year at the BSM. I am so proud of Ben and the way he leads this ministry. So proud of the students who serve and lead with him. -1st Grade Bible presentation at church- Libby's excitement over her new Bible and the notes tucked in God's Words from our family -staff lunches... and the people I get to work and serve beside every week -watching the kids in Stix N Tones pray together through the window -Ben's Mother's Day gifts to me -the Send Conference... "Gospel action is in part brought on by gospel agony." -Tripp Lee,"If you are going to have justification then you must talk about justice" -Russell Moore, "The last thing the nations need is nominal Christianity and a diluted gospel." -David Platt -an end to a fun baseball season- great memories, college students who showed up big time to support Tuck at his games, and an awesome coach (Ben). -an end to a great school year -celebrating Greg and Sarah's wedding- such a sweet and beautiful ceremony -lots of play time with the kids in the neighborhood -celebrating 14 years of marriage with one incredible guy "Prayer is abandoning my addiction to other glories and delighting in the one glory that is truly glorious- the glory of God."
-Paul Tripp |
AuthorWe are a family of five (Ben, Beth, Tucker, Libby, and Zane). We started this blog during our 7 year journey to bring home a child through adoption. This is our story of how God is faithful in the good, the bad, and all the in between. Archives
June 2020
Categories
All
|