Update and funnies!

Hi all!
I am sitting here, waiting for my dress pants to finish drying in the dryer, still in a bathrobe, thank you very much!  Sigh.  It is so humid that things are really having a hard time drying.  But, that means that I have a few minutes where my choices are either to clean something, or give an update!  It is only 7:15AM and I am opting for updating!!!  It seems like lately we have been so busy with so many good things, that I just haven't had a chance  until I am too tired to put a coherent thought together!

Tonight is opening night for Phantom of the Opera at St. Norbert's College - it is going to be amazing and I am so looking forward to it - especially because my favorite guy has a part in it!  Steve is playing one of the new owners of the theater, Andre, and has a challenging part.  That means that we really haven't seen him much for the last two months, and while I encouraged (read in here, really really bugged) him to do it, it has been a long stretch in our busiest season.  We are all missing each other and ready for regular life.  But in the meantime, there is a great ten shows to come!!!!  I am so proud of him, and know that he has worked so hard and will be fabulous!!!  Tonight we have nine tickets for opening night, so the kids and I get to go!!!!  I am so excited!  And in about two weeks, we will have him home in the evenings again!!!

Alex and Zeri leave this weekend for a mission trip to Joplin, MO (where the devastating tornadoes were).  I am so proud of them, grateful that they got sponsors so they can go and help.  They are both really hard workers and I know will be a great benefit to the team and the community there.  We have really emphasized service in our family and outreach, but this is an opportunity on a whole different level, and I am sure it will impact them significantly.  I suspect that my young men will return to us somewhat matured and molded by this experience. 

Then Faith and Solomon have Bible camp next week too!  They have worked and saved their money and are ready to go.  How it all fell on the same week, I am still surprised by!  They are very excited and looking forward to it. 

So, it will be me and four kids next week!  The shock on our faces when we realized that was hilarious!  It will be a great chance for us all to have some special time together, and we are looking forward to it, though I am sure it will be odd to say the least!

On the adoption front:  the homestudy is completed and in hand.  We have to send in our immigration paperwork - and a check of course - sigh.  At this point it is an impossibility I believe for us to get a court date before court closure - August 15th.  That means that hopefully we will get one in early October.  That places us bringing our girls home around Christmas or so.  It is always unpredictable and anything can happen, but that is sort of the timeline now.  I am going to be swamped this weekend with grant applications and our annual reports on the five kids already here!  Paperwork, paperwork!  I am doing everything possible to get all the needed funds, though I heartily admit that having our tax return would take care of everything!  However, like most adoptive parents, we are still waiting on that, with absolutely no idea when or if we will actually get it. 

So, we are doing the only things we know how to do to provide - I was blessed to be able pick up some extra hours at work, and some temp hours so I am doing that.  We made a plan as a family on how to handle this so we can get it all done.  It isn't ideal, I would much rather be home, but it is working, and the kids are great.  We are selling whatever we can, including my precious spinning wheel, in order to fund this.  My plan is to pay off everything we can, stockpile whatever we can, just do whatever can be done!  If anyone in Green Bay or Denmark or Kewaunee would like to host a rummage sale, we would love to do one - just living as rurally as we do, it doesn't make any sense to do it here.  But we have lots and could even consider taking donations, I just need a place to do it.  God is good, has met us along the road, though it hasn't often been easy, it has continued to move.  He has a plan and a purpose and all is to be done in His timing. 

We still have puzzle pieces available - I will do an update on that shortly! 

Take care and God bless!!!  Enjoy the rest of the summer!  It is hot and humid here, but we will take it compared to what we know will come in the winter!  Well, the dryer is done, and I am off to work!  Love to all!

"For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans for hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11

Today....

I think I will be Scarlett O'Hara - not the nasty icky one, but the one that is determined and resourceful and persistent.  

"For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans for hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11

Happy Fourth of July!!!!!

I know that it isn't the fourth,  but I thought I would post while I could.  Technology is amazing!!!!  I am sitting here around our bonfire and putting together a post!  LOL!  The kids are currently joking about the size of vehicle we drive, what might be next.  There is lots of silliness going on.

You have to understand, it has been a long couple days, and my thought processes may not be up to normal.  Can I back up???

A dear friend died a few days ago, and the funeral was on Friday.  Our best man's dad passed away and we were blessed enough to be able to be of help as they work on the next steps.  It is hard to see, and reminds us all that there is some point at which we will be doing the same thing for our own families.  At this point, our parents are independent and healthy, but we are not foolish enough to think that this will always be the case.  it was a reminder to take advantage of every minute we can have with our loved ones.  (LOL!  The kids just were being silly and erupted into a version of "In the Garden! - turns out we do know it by heart!!!!)

And also we were reminded of our own frailties!  I was riding one of our horses, and he was doing really well, I was beginning some early lessons with Tsion and just about to consider putting her on him, when we realized that he was kicking at flies on his belly.  So I asked Kiley to spray him for me - well, I was on him, had been riding for some time.  Turns out he doesn't like fly spray - he seems to think it is something that will eat him.

Riding a horse, you always have to recall that you are riding a prey animal.  In other words, when something scares them, they are convinced that whatever it is is going to eat them.  And they tend to respond fairly dramatically when something scares them that bad.

So, I went from a very gentle, simple ride on a very gentle horse - to suddenly being launched all over the place - I hear he bucked or jumped or whatever at least five times.   I recall at least two or three, at which point I realized that I could not grab anything to hang on to, and I wasn't quite sure how to get off.  In all the haze, I do recall that.

I understand from the kids and hubby that I was unconscious in our round pen for "three minutes!.  I really don't remember much until we were on our way to the hospital.  For me, as a speech therapist, it is scary to realize how little I can recall.  I do those tests on folks all the time.  It was spooky to not be able to tell someone what day it is or whatever.  My memory has come back for things that are going forward, but that period of time is missing.  The doctors say it is normal, I tell people about that all the time, but it feels way different when it is me.  (No, I wasn't wearing a helmet, but I didn't hit my head according to everyone - I know that I am justifying it, but anyway....)

So, I have all sorts of pain medications to get me through - makes me totally useless, but comfortable through the headache.  Ugh.  Having to concentrate hard on things but can get it done.  I know that it will be okay, but it is frustrating.  I have been banned from horseback for two weeks - they don't want me to fall again and jarr my head.  Sigh.

Anyway, the end of the story is that we are sitting around our fire pit, roasting marshmellows, and my laptop signal reaches this far!  Yay!  No one will let me do anything  much right now, keep trying to get me to sit down, and even encouraged me to take a nap today.  The headache comes and goes, but does seem to get better slowly.  My elbow is really bruised, and my right ankle definitely took some of the brunt of the fall.

So, that is  a very disjointed introduction to our evening.  A bonfire, burning up branches from our yard clean up, marshmellows, hot dogs and lawn chairs.  The kids are in fine form, very silly.  It is a lovely summer night.  It really got dark at almost 10PM.  The kids are laughing, Steve is home with us, I am planted here, there are barn kitties visiting us, life is good.  Steve took some photos of Alex today: Take a look!!!!!

Aren't they great?  Doggone it, he looks older and older all the time.  Not too ready for my firstborn to be growing up so fast!  I don't know if you ever get used to it.  We are doing portraits on July 10th, check out our facebook page "portraits for a purpose".

Well, I hope that this wasn't too disjointed, I know it wasn't my usual style.  I am tired and ready for bed.  Only a slight headache which is a good improvement.  I think a nap will help.

Tomorrow we get a replacement washing machine - used, but new to us, and as long as it washes clothes, then I am good!  A month without a washer - for a family of ten - is  a very long time. The laundromat costs a fortune, and still only does some of our stuff.  I will happily be washing and hanging things on the line - drying whatever I need to, letting as much line dry as will fit.  I never took it for granted before, but I surely won't at all anymore!  Imagine the joys of being able to do laundry as we go through life!  Many loads of laundry going through!!!  Yay!!!!

I have kombacha going too!  The challenge is that several of the kids love it!  One of those health drinks that I expected to have to bribe the kids to try, now they drink it all down!  I have to limit them to one a day!  So, I got three batches going now - I love the pina colada batch, that is my favorite so far, but I tried a cherry juice one - will try that tomorrow.  Three more batches going, ready tomorrow!  And the same friend who started me on that, has got me gleaning whatever I can from my fairly unsuccessful garden this year.  Dandelion root is my current thing.  Supposedly I can dry it and grind it up to brew with coffee (or instead of it) and it has great health benefits.  I would settle for finding something useful in that mess that is supposed to be my garden.

Well, I am about done, headed to bed.  My kids are very funny, but I am beat.  Life on the farm never ends in its entertainment!

"For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans for hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11