Crochet Hats

I'm selling crochet hats (made by me) to help raise funds for the adoption. I know this is a small beans kind of fund raiser but I am pulling out all the stops to bring my little boy home!

This one is the bomber hat. I just love it! It is great to keep little ones ears warm. I also made this for a neighbor of mine without the bow ( it was for a boy). It turned out great!

This is the butterfly. I can't tell you how cut this one is on!

Here is the "dressed down" version. I like this one for boys especially. I can do them in camo or I can add the skater boy look with a stripe around the rim. Anything you like!

Just email me (or call) and let me know what you'd like! Thanks y'all!

Truly Blessed!

This weekend we had the mother of all yard sales. This was our first fundraiser for the adoption and quite possibly the last yard sale I will every do:0) Wow! I knew it was going to be a lot of work but didn't realize how exhausting it would be. I'm not sure having a garage sale in a yard that has the same slope as Stone Mountain was the smartest decision I have ever made. I'm sure the guys who helped us unpack the garage felt the same way.

Anyway, about 2 months ago I emailed everybody I have ever known and asked for any items in their house they were planning on getting rid of. David and I said we would come over with our trailer and pick it up and use it in our yard sale. And boy, did we get a response. We spent weekends and week nights hauling the trailer around the Atlanta area picking up everybody's stuff.

Here is my garage the morning before of the sale. And yes, both David and I could park in here before we got all the donations.

Here's the formal living room with books, games, and boxes of clothes. I believe I had at least 100 boxes in my house full of mostly clothes.

Here are all the clothes that would end up in those boxes. David decided to bring all the bags of clothes into the dining room for sorting (along with the books, CDs, DVDs, and VHS tapes). He then jumped on a plane headed for Baltimore as quickly as he could. Grrrr!

Before we started all this I asked God to open or clothes the doors for me. Actually, I was hoping for an email from the Almighty containing step by step directions for carrying out this adoption. But seeing as how that didn't happen, I just prayed that God's will would be done. If He wanted this adoption to take place I knew He would provide a way. When I sent the email out I figured we would get the random bag of kid's clothes and maybe a few dirty kid's toys. I never expected all this.

Or this,

I was completely overwhelmed, but in a good way!

Sooooo many people came out to help. There is no way we could have done it without them. There were people unloading boxes, moving furniture, organizing clothes, and taking up money. During the middle of the day I zoned out and couldn't figure out what I should be doing. I sort of just stood there in awe. I had to ask my buddies to tell me what to do. They were the glue that held the yard sale together.

So, all in all, the yard sale was a success. Some of the nicer items donated I sold earlier on Craig's List. So with the Craig's List money and the yard sale we made..................................................................

$4000!!!

That's double what we prayed for. God truly blessed us!

I want to thank everyone who donated items and also those who helped out with the yard sale. I am thankful beyond belief. It's hard to believe that people would take time out of their busy schedule to come and help us raise money to bring out little boy home. But they did. And we couldn't have done it without them.

Thank you, from the bottom of my heart.

Meemaw

Back when my kids were real little, Grandaddy Ang and Meemaw would take the kids to either Six Flags, Ga Aquarium, White Water, or some such entertainment arena.

To be perfectly honest, I thought they were insane. Not only did they take my children but they also took all the other grand kids.

Needless to say, either David or I went with them for crowd control. It was always a hot sweaty day but boy did those kids have fun!

This happened to be one of those times that I was not there, I believe. I'd say my son was either very hot or very sunburned. Maybe a little of both.

This picture must have been taken at Six Flags ( it could have been American Adventures). Meemaw is the one hiding behind Murry Margaret. Wasn't that handsome looking group?

They stopped taking the kids a few years back. Maybe they got a look at their credit card bill after one of their trips and decided they'd had enough. Or maybe they just started having so many grand kids they decided that going to a theme park wasn't a good idea. At last count there were 10 grand kids with one more waiting for them in Hong Kong.

Today is a hard day. Today is Meemaw's birthday. She's not here to celebrate with us. The Lord took her to be with Him on Feb. 14, 2011. It has been a long, hard 7 months. My kids know that Meemaw was not their biological grandmother but it didn't matter because she was their Meemaw. The funeral was awful hard. Both kids sobbed and begged me to take them home.

I just told Holley Kate about her birthday and she started crying again. It's hard to loose your grandmother at any age but 8 and 10 years old were especially hard.

My father-in-law still struggles daily. October is a hard month. Not only is it Meemaw's birthday but it is also breast cancer awareness month. Everywhere you look there is a pink ribbon. For those that are unaware that they are at risk, the ribbon is a subtle reminder to get those mammograms. For those of us who have lost a loved one to breast cancer, seeing the ribbon is a reminder that not everyone survives.

I do know this though. Meemaw would be mad with us if she knew we were crying for her on her birthday. So, I'll wipe my tears that are dripping off my nose and wish a Happy Birthday to Meemaw in heaven!

October Adoption Update

We had our 3rd (out of 4) meeting with the social worker today. David and I were asked questions about our family life separately. Every meeting with her feels like a mini-therapy session. You have to bare your soul in order to adopt. I mean, good grief! All those little things that I tend to sweep under the carpet have come out in these meetings.

Last week we put a child on "hold" for us. What that means is that no one else in Bethany is eligible to adopt him. Now, if a couple from another adoption agency decides they want him, there is nothing we can do to stop them from adopting the child. It would just be a matter of who gets there first. Hong Kong won't recognize a "hold" on a child until the paper work is sent to Hong Kong and approved.

Trying to "pick" a child was a pretty hard task. We have prayed over several of the children. I asked for open and closed doors and God did just that. Another couple in the Atlanta are adopting the little girl we had been considering. That left the little boy wide open. I can't give too many details about him here except that it is a little boy and he is less than 3 years old. He is also a special needs child.

I have poured over his medical charts, which thankfully, were written in English. I have called and consulted with my pediatrician (who also consulted with her husband who is a neurologist). I've talked to countless people about his medical conditions. How do you know how much you can handle? How do you know where the child will ultimately end up? Will he grow up and be a productive member of society or does he face a very different future?

And you know what? We decided it didn't matter. If this was the child that God has chosen for us then nothing else mattered. It is no different than if the child sprung from my very own loins. We'll do everything in our power to fix what is wrong and we'll just deal with the un-fixable.

So the big question is, how are we going to come up with the funds for the adoption? Well... We are planning a yard sale for the first weekend in November. If you have anything that you'd like to get rid of ( and you live in the greater Atlanta area) please let me know and we'll come by and pick it up so it can be included in our yard sale. I'm also selling some things on Craig's List.

David and I ask that you pray for us, our kids, and our "to be" kid. Please pray that we continue to follow God's path. Please pray for patience (for me especially). My pediatrician was very adamant that we move as quickly as possible to get him over her as soon as we could. I think I felt my anxiety level rise as we talked.

Anyway, that's it for now. Thanks for hanging in there with me!

My Favorite stuff by Holley Kate Schramm

1.I really like american girls. Visit it at http://www.americangirl.com/play/. I'ts really fun.

2.HARRY POTTER!Mostly.

3.I enjoy writing plays. I finished one called :Princess Petunia Flare. You want to see?https://docs.google.com/document/d/1iQxzr_lZdQOZdbX0F9M8qMwnrdVuc0Oez1LuDrhfu4s/edit?hl=en_US.

4.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXIgNnB_oq4 is a funny video that is good to watch-if you like Harry Potter.

5.I like T.V. , as every child.

6.And I like it when you "happily" read my blog.

7.I also like my animals.

Hm...........Harry Potter...............Harry Potter................Harry Potter................Harry Potter............I guess that's it. Did I mention Harry Potter?Please post a comment as an answer.

My Relationship With Nemo by Holley Kate Schramm

As I said earlier,I will write about my cat,Nemo. These are the reasons he wouldn't like me.

1.One night I took Nemo to my room and dressed him up in clothes. Everyone knew he was in my room because you would hear "Meow......Meow.....". He had so much "fun"(aka misery).

2.I would put him in the flexible crate I mentioned in my earlier post and flipped it around.

3.Once I forced him to eat kitty or doggy food. We had a table on our porch so we were under there and I opened his mouth and forced it in and we had a wild "cat" chase.

4.He's always been scared of Yogi ever since we got him,so I took him inside because it had been ages since he was in my house. I should have known better. I set him free through the doggy door and held Yogi's collar until he escaped. It was about fifteen seconds before I let him go.

These are the the reasons he should like me

1.I feed him.

2.I furmanate him. Furmanate means taking a brush that gets the hair that they will shed.

3.I pet him.

And he cherishes the moments I do that to him.

My Crazy Dogs (and me)By Holley Kate

by Holley Kate Schramm

After experiencing two dogs,we get two more. As my mom says "We can't get a dog without a problem." That is true.

Like people,our dogs have hobbies:chasing balls and wrestling Calvin and each other.

Today,during school,Mom asked me to tell her the definition of embrace,so I said to hug,and I hugged Lilly.

(As always)Yogi was on the floor. Now as I write this my animals are outside. I think they are fighting over the ball (again).

Today,I came down the stairs and Yogi barked at me. He didn't see my face,that's why he barked.

I can't imagine if we took the dogs to an Aquarium. Oh,now I can. Bark,bark,bark. Bark,bark,bark. Bark Bark,bark. (Translated:Bad Fish!Don't swim!Don't hurt Masters!)

I know what Yogi and Lilly would say if they could talk!"Ball". And if I made Lilly get in my lap she would say "Help,help!This person is crazy!Help,help!" That's what she looked like earlier when she was in my lap.

Lilly never looked like she liked me. I know why. Where should I start?I know!One night I took Lilly to my room.(She looked like Uh oh. This won't end pretty)I decided since she wanted to leave,she was bad. It happened a few times,then the big punishment came. I put her in an empty pillowcase and swung her around. I sure was a little ball of rage.
Another time,I think I put her in a bikini. I let her downstairs to show mom.

To add to the reasons of why Lilly shouldn't like me,I took her outside with Maya (and Anya). Yes folks. This won't end pretty. I put on a show called "The Doggy Show". I picked and swung her around. You name it I (probably) did it. Jumping,yes. Flipping,I think so.

I also put her in a flexible crate and made the door the top by turning it and swinging it around.(the other victim was my cat,Nemo aka Nemezy aka Neem)I will probably give you the list of reasons why Nemo does and doesn't like me next.

Random Monday Musings

1. Everybody in my house has a cold. But mine has to be the worst. My nostrils can't decide which one wants to be clogged. Unless I am going for a walk, then both of them gush like I turned on a water spigot. I also have this fabulously sexy voice. It is gravely and barley comes out unless I push it. Oh, and the piece de resistance is the earth shattering headache I feel whenever I cough. I've taken to holding my temples when I cough to make sure no brain matter escapes. Yummy!

2. The adoption is trucking right along. David and I have had all our medical tests done and we don't have HIV, tuberculosis or syphilis. Yay us!

3. We are collecting items for a yard sale to help raise funds for the baby. I am just astounded at how generous everyone has been. The entire left side of my garage is completely full and I haven't even gone through my own house yet. We are still collecting items so if you'd like to donate your unwanted things, David and I will be happy to come pick it up.

4. The kids' play is finished! And the choir of angels sang, "Hallelujah"!!! It was so much fun but there is nothing like seeing that last curtain call. Both of my kids performed magnificently. It was like both of them came alive once the audience filled the seats. I have no idea where they got their talent. Their Dad and I are such math/science nerds that there must have been some rogue recessive gene that got a hold of both 'em.

5. David's audit finished up last Thursday and that second choir of angels sang, "Hallelujah". I realized I hadn't REALLY talked to him in a week. I was jabbering on about something this weekend and he had no idea what I was talking about b/c, of course, we hadn't talked. Oh well, everything is back to normal now. Wait, scratch that. He just emailed and said he'd be staying at work through dinner. Dangit!

6. Much to my chagrin we put the fall decor out this weekend. I am a total buzz kill. I used to love putting all the pumpkins and scare-a-crows out all over the house. Now I hate it. It is a total pain in the butt to pull everything out of storage, dust if off, put it up and then eventually have to take all the crap back down again. Bah Humbug! Oh, and don't even get me started on Christmas decorations. I'll tell you this, they come down the day after Christmas! I just get so sick of having it all over my house and in the way that Dec. 26 is the cut off date for all things festive!

I think I may have issues...

We Are Expecting

Via adoption that is!!

Some of you may know by now but we are making it official. The Schramms will soon add one more to their clan.

We are going to Hong Kong sometime next year to bring home our baby (well not exactly a baby) boy/girl. We are looking at a special needs child between the ages of 1 & 4. This particular program allows you to "pick" your child which has been really really hard.

So, why adopt at all? Isn't our life full enough without adding a special needs kiddo into the mix?The answer is simple. God called us and we are answering His call. There is nothing easy about this. Rewarding, yes but not easy. There are so many references in the Bible where God has called his people to do hard things. You can't really compare adopting a special needs child to Noah building the ark, but there are similarities.

God told Noah to build the ark, so Noah built an ark. Everybody around him thought he was crazy. I'm sure he looked rather foolish having this gigantic boat for a storm that no one could even imagine. Imagine the ridicule he received at the hand of non believers.

There have been questions as to why we are doing this that have been rather uncomfortable. If I say that I that God has called us to adopt, does that make me sound self righteous? Does it mean that I have this connection to God that nobody else does? Does He speak to David and me because we are far superior Christians to everyone else? Quite the contrary. I know I speak for both of us when I say that we are flawed beyond human repair.

I've never heard God speak to me but I have seen His provision in this process. My husband was completely against adopting. One night while we were talking about adopting (yet again) he said it was like somebody flicked him in the head. Just like that, he was ready to adopt. Wow!!! God didn't send me the Holy email complete with instructions on when and where to adopt but He put my husband and me in unison. That is how I know that this is what we are supposed to be doing.

I'm not saying that if David and I both agreed that robbing a bank was a good idea it would be God's calling for us. I'm saying that in God's word He demands that we care for the fatherless. That is clear. How you take care of the orphans is where it gets dicey.

An adopted child is no less a member of your family than a biological child. God shows us this in the Bible. He adopted us into His family. He weaves us into the vine, so to speak. None of us deserves it. It is by His grace that we are members are of His family. Adopting a child is a picture of what God does for us as His children.

David and I are blessed beyond understanding with our two children. We are going to be blessed again next year. Please be in prayer for us. Please pray for God's provision throughout this process.

If you've made it this far, God love ya! I'll be updating everyone via the blog on the adoption process. Check back to see what is gong on!

Of Methodists and Presbyterians

How do two people who were born and bred Methodist decide to be Presbyterians?

You feed us, of course!

Do you remember as a little kid growing up and having church on the grounds?

That's what we do. Everybody in the picture is milling around waiting on the preacher to say grace so we can EAT!!

Get a look at all these sweet ladies ( and one man I might add) bustling around the kitchen trying to get all the food prepped and ready for the table.

I just love First Sunday Lunch!!

And by the way, I'm totally kidding about them using the food to entice us into becoming Presbyterians. David and I thought long and prayed hard about what denomination we should be and therefore raise our kids. It wasn't a decision we took lightly.

But you all know there is something so special about hanging out with all your church buddies and sharing a meal!

Yogi was sad when we got home b/c he didn't even save him one hot dog!

(Nasty) Food, Inc.

This past week has been a very enlightening one to say the least. For the past several years when anyone would mention "organic" I would have one of two reactions. 1) I would stick my fingers in my ears and sing "la-la-la-la-la" or 2) I would rant about how expensive organics were and how I could not afford them.

All that changed after watching Food, Inc.

Let me preface all this with the fact that I grew up in south GA where there were thousands of stinky smelly chicken houses. I had cows in both my front and back yard ( and even on the side when they were going from one field to the other). We even had neighbors that were pig farmers. GG, my grandmother, used to work at the sale barn in Americus where all the local farmers would bring their cattle, pigs, and the such to sell them. My brother and I would go up to see her at work and watch the auctions. So, of course, I pompously thought I had a pretty good grasp on how that end of the food industry ran.

The idea of providing good living conditions for animals was ludicrous to me. I mean, what more did they want? Shelter for the stupid cows when it rained? Apparently they way I see the cows being raised (by my grandfather, BTW) is a lot different from the way most cattle is raised on feed lots.

The pictures I saw on Food, Inc. showed these beasts standing in their own waste which piled up taller than they were. It was disgusting. Our fields back home are littered with "cow patties" but they were just more or less the things you avoided hitting on the 4-wheeler b/c the poop would spin out in the tires and splatter your entire back. Our cows don't stand in it 24/7. Their poo just went back into the soil as fertilizer.

I had heard rumors of chickens being given hormones to decrease the amount of time it took for a egg to become an chicken. I tried not to think about it ( remember the "la-la-la" episodes?). But when it is thrust in your face you just have to give it some thought. Do I want to feed a chicken to my kids that has been given hormones (and who knows what else?) to make it grow at twice the normal speed? It is hard for me to even go there. There are just sooooo many things wrong with that.

The whole time I lived in south GA I never went into a chicken house. I never wanted to . They stunk to high heaven. So I truly have no idea what the living conditions for the chickens were. I have a feeling their living conditions were as deplorable as the chickens in that documentary.

"Free range chicken" is what you're supposed to look for on the tag. I'll pay the extra money for the "organic, free range chicken" not just because the chickens have more room to move around but because they don't have to stand in their own poop all day.

As I'm telling David all about what I have learned from watching this very compelling documentary he gets this weird look on his. Um.... It might be a possibility that he told me all of this a few years ago. I must have pretended to listen while mentally stuffing my ears full of cotton and singing the "la-la-la-la" song.

Sorry babe! You were right!

Vertigo

This past weekend David and I took the kids and my parents to the Ga Aquarium. If you've never been it is well worth the trip.

The whole place is incredibly cool. The Beluga whales were beyond amazing.

The whales would swim right up to the viewing area and rub their backs against the glass.

This one was doing a solo swimming act.

I guess my equilibrium problems started in the Beluga whale exhibit but it definitely got worse when we headed into the tunnel.

On the left is the people mover (which of course I was on) and on the right the people were walking at their own pace. Overhead were a bazillion fish swimming in random circles. How could you not be dizzy with all this random movement going on?

And this silly whale shark kept swimming over my head.

So here's what happened. In an attempt to regain my balance I'd lift my left foot up and flail my arms around like I was trying to take flight. One would think the normal reaction to experiencing vertigo would be to lean back against the nearest wall. But no, not me. I've got this weird pelican dance thing going on.

The first person I hit with my thrashing arms was a poor pre-teen. I whacked her right on the forehead. After profusely apologizing to both her and her mother I made a promise to myself that I'd keep my hands and arms to myself.

That lasted all of 2 minutes. I was not so lucky the next time. Apparently my arms were flying a bit lower this time and I smacked an older guy in his man parts..... I looked up into his eyes after I committed this atrocity and realized a simple apology was not sufficient.

So I did what any other proper Southern lady would do; I ducked and ran !

I decided to leave the all the other touchy and feely exhibits of the aquarium to the kids after that. My hands remained permanently burrowed into my pockets :0)

Hangin' with my Homies

I don't think most people believe me when I tell them that Gwinnett county has the biggest population of home schoolers in the state of Georgia. But I now have irrefutable proof.

Check out the number of women in the photo. This was the fall meeting of one of our local home schooling groups. It offers everything from field trips to spelling bees. There were so many moms there that there were women standing in the back.

Here is Julie, our fearless leader, who did her best to corral everyone. Wait a minute! Something is not right. I think we need more light.

click

I'm BLIND!!!

(said in my best Wicked Witch of the West voice)

OK, much better now.

"And, remember NO paper on the walls and absolutely NO glitter!!!" :0)

In all seriousness, our home school group has over 200 families. I think there is even a waiting list for prospective members.

This is the field trip sign up table. This picture really doesn't do it justice. I can't even tell you how many field trips there were to sign up for. Maybe this will help dispel the rumor that home schoolers sit in the house and never go outside. Quite the opposite!

It was a great night to hang out with friends and just catch up. There was plenty of laughter and even a few tears.

And don't forget the food. See that dip in the lower right hand corner? I made that. It's called Redneck Caviar. I wish I had taken a picture of the bowl at the end of the night. It was all gone. Yay me!

Little known fact: most home schooling moms don't wear jumper dresses with wide collared shirts! I'll prove it. Check out these pictures.

Is this what you imagined home schooled moms to look like?

Or this?

Well, maybe this...

Ha! Just kidding sweet Karen! In all fairness, I was bugging her to turn around and smile for the camera.

I really am blessed to have such a supportive group of women of whom I can ask almost anything. It is great to be able to bounce ideas off of each other, ask questions about curriculum, and even discuss parenting.

The best part is being surrounded by Godly women who inspire everyone around them.

Random Thoughts

1. Tomorrow is our official first day of school. The politicians in Georgia decided that children have to go to school at least 180 days a year and they have to do 4.5 hours of work a day. We do school year round. We take a week off for VBS, a week off for camp, a few days at Thanksgiving, & a week or two a Christmas. We get way more than 180 days a year. That just works better for us.

2. My husband's cousin died yesterday in a car wreck. She had a 16 year old, a 12 year, and 2 & 1/2 year old twins. Please remember them in your prayers.

3. David and I have been watching Mad Men on Netflix for a few weeks now. It is really growing on me. It is not nearly as action packed as 24 but still a good series. I usually feel like a need a shower to wash off all the smoke after I watch it though.

4. I'm still trying to figure out how I feel about Governor Rick Perry. I dislike the idea that he mandated the Gardasil vaccine for sixth grade girls back in 2007 but I like that Texas has been teaching creation. I guess it all just comes down to voting for the lesser of the two evils.

5. I'd like Sarah Palin a lot more if she'd quit and stay at home with her kids.

6. We should get the estimate on the basement later this week.

7. My parents are coming up this weekend. Since the guest room in the basement flooded they'll be sleeping in one of the kid's rooms. I guess I'll need to make sure and get the crayons and Legos out of their beds before then.

8. I love the women in my church. They may not all carry concealed themselves but none of them care that I do. As a matter of fact, we are getting a group together to go target shooting. Ladies shoot free on Thursdays. Let me know if you wanna go with.

9. I ran into a friend at Publix. She works as a lunch lady at the country club of public high schools around here. She said one of the teenagers called her co-worker 2 words. One that starts with an "f" and one that starts with a "b". My friend was having none of this and put the girl in her place. I have to wonder how these children are being raised that they would even think about speaking to an adult in that way.

10. I went to a party last night with a whole bunch of my church buddies. I am so blessed to have such fabulous women in my life.

Snow in August

When you live with one of these

and also one of these

you expect you fair share of mishaps.

David has this pillow which we lovingly refer to as his "butt pillow". It is a Total Pillow which I'm sure you have seen on t.v. I bought it for him before his long flight to Japan. BTW, I'd put a link here if I know how to embed, but I don't. You'll either have to google it or just trust me on this.

Anyway, I now know what is on the inside of the Total Pillow. How, you ask? I know this because when we came home from church today everything that was on the inside of butt pillow was now on the outside. There was a fine layer of these teeny tiny balls spread out evenly over my entire downstairs and porch.

See, the cool thing is, these little balls are so light that any gust of wind will cause them to scatter. Sweeping the balls up is next to impossible. I wish I had taken a picture of the house. But I was too busy sweeping myself in circles and calling the dogs very ugly names.

Can you see the white stuff in the cracks of the porch? That's what formed a fine layer all over my house. It was just like snow in August. This is only one mess in a series of messes the dogs have created. I came home one day to find packing peanuts spread out in much the same way the butt pillow's balls were. I find that slow deep breaths help.

It really doesn't do any good to get mad. Dogs just use their God given ability to give you one of these looks and it is impossible to stay mad ( well except for Yogi, he just looks drunk).

Ransom

I've started and stopped 2 different posts within the last few days. The last few days have been very trying for us.

Tuesday night my water heater decided to burst and flood my basement. Yes, it was a mess. Yes, it was a pain in the butt. But that is not the hardest part. We have a $5000 deductible. Stupid, stupid us.

David and I made an important decision a few weeks ago and had a special purpose for that money. Now it is gone and we are starting over. Big sigh.

I know God will provide. It is all in His timing. That is what I keep telling myself when I get down. At least we had the money. At least we don't have to tell the kids that they have to take cold baths because mom and dad can't afford a new water heater. Did I mention that the water heater isn't covered under insurance? That was an extra $1K. Another big sigh.

While I was trying not to drown in depression I reassured myself by saying it could be worse. One of the kids could have gotten sick. We could have had a higher deductible ;0). Someone could have died... This list goes on and on.

None of my problems compare to what you are about to read.

There are several web sites that I check regularly to see listing of orphans with Down Syndrome (Reece's Rainbow) and how some of these children are doing when they get to their forever home. This is where I learned about Liliana.

Liliana is an orphan somewhere in Eastern Europe. She has Down's Syndrome. She is 11 years old and weighs only 10 lbs. 10 lbs!!!! I'm not sure how a child of 11 years of age can weigh that little and still live. I just kills me to think of the wasting her body has endured. Can you imagine being that hungry and not being fed? Imagine the internal war her little body is fighting. How can that happen to a child? How can a group of people, day after day, walk past this little girl and know that she is dying but still do nothing.

We treat our dogs better than this.

A fellow blogger has set up a Chip-In fund. They will be giving away iPads, iPods, gift cards, and lots of other things to raise money in hopes that someone can be her Mom and Dad. Adoptions in these countries can cost between $20,000-$30,000. The quicker we raise the money the quicker we can get her home.

Please donate if you can. I already did. It's real easy. You just need a PayPal account. Please go to the link below. There are pictures of Liliana there.

http://www.nogreaterjoymom.com/

I'm asking you to pray for this little girl and give if you can.

Thank you!

Bon Bons and Oprah

Come on , admit it. You know that you think stay at home moms have it made. If you don't think so now you know you did 10 years ago before you actually became one.

David and I moved into our current neighborhood 11 year ago. I was surprised at how many stay at home moms I ran into. What on God's green earth did they do all day? I mean, I got up, showered, went to work ( 12 hours I might add), came home and did it all again. On my days off I would handle everything that needed to be handled (except for cooking for my husband but I'll talk about that later). Was the stereo type true? Did they really sit around and watch Oprah and eat Bon Bons?

Oh, the ignorance of youth....

Then I had my first child. He was born 5 weeks early. I was released and had to leave the hospital without my baby. You know when you go to the maternity wing at the hospital and you see the women being pushed out to the car with their sweet babies in their arms? Flowers and balloons trail behind them in a cart. The proud daddy hurries the car around to gather up mommy and baby for the ride home. Well, that wasn't me. I was wheeled out and put in my car to go home without my baby. I didn't matter if the car seat was in correctly because there was no baby to put in it. My tiny baby was still inside that big cold building being taken care of by people I didn't know. It was one of the worst days of my life. I remember calling my sister-in-law (who had a similar experience just 18 months prior) and just weeping.

I had planned on going back to work. I have a vague memory of having asked a fellow pharmacist's grandfather to watch my baby along with his own grandchildren. I guess my plan was to plop my kid off with a man I didn't know so that I could go back to work. After all, I made way too much money not to work, right?

God had a different plan.

I was so mad that my baby was sick. He wasn't as sick as some of the other babies in the NICU but he was still sick. It makes me nauseated even now to think about it. The doctors read me the riot act about taking him out in public. It was RSV season and premature babies could get really sick and even possibly die from that. Under no circumstance was he to go into any form of daycare. The church nursery was out as well.

Congratulations! Here's your baby. Sink or swim Mom and Dad.

By the grace of God we swam. I cut back to only weekend work. I was home during the week and David had the weekend shift. It is almost comical looking back. We had the hot water heater shut off because we forgot to pay the bill. How was I supposed to warm the bottle (don't worry, he got breast milk it just wasn't straight from the source-there were sucking issues) without hot water let alone take a shower? Taking care of our teeny tiny projectile vomiting baby was our number one priority.

He didn't get RSV. Come to think of it he was 3 ( I believe) before he was on his first antibiotic. I guess I went a little overboard with the quarantine thing.

Now, almost 11 years later I see God's hand in all of this. I really don't think that we would have made the decision for me to stay at home had Calvin not been born prematurely. Home schooling would have been laughable.

Romans 8:28 comes to mind. 28-And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him who have been called according to His purpose.

I am blessed beyond belief to be able to stay at home with my kiddos. We're blessed to be able to see the kids growing up as the covenant children they are.

On a side note, one of the many benefits of me working weekends was that David got to be the full time caregiver for 2 days straight (did I mention that our closest family lives 3 hours away?). Because of that he has a lot of empathy for what "staying at home" means.

We both used to laugh at those women in our neighborhood who stayed at home instead of getting a real job.

We don't laugh anymore.

Soap Box

I was asked for maybe the umpteenth time the other day why I home schooled my kids. I've been doing this officially for 6 years ( and unofficially 10 & 1/2 years) and I've been asked some version of that question more times than I'd like to count.

I really don't mind being asked this question. Home schooling is not yet the norm and people just don't understand how it can actually work. It is hard to understand how mom can teach both 3rd & 5th grade math at the same time.

I enjoy discussing curriculum and extra-curricular activities. Unfortunately most people ask about home schooling so they can slide the "socialization" question in. "Are you sure your kids are being socialized properly?" or "What do you do for socialization?" are the main questions I get.

When did attending a government school mean you had good social skills? And exactly when did the government get into the business of socializing our kids? That actually frightens me.

Before I'm branded as "anti-public schools" let me just clear the air.

I am.

No regrets & no apologies. I feel the same way about day care. You use them as a last resort. I just philosophically disagree. I don't believe that our founding fathers meant for the government to be in charge of educating our kids. Period.

But I don't begrudge people for sending their kids to the public schools. It's their choice. Far be it for me to tell them how to educate the children that God gave them. Some of my dearest friends send their kids to public school.

But they also don't ask me the phony bologna socialization question either.

So what if my kids are weird? So are yours.

My kids aren't weird because of not sending them to a government school, that I can assure you of.

My kids are weird because their mom and dad are weird. And I'm cool with that.

Pharmacy - More Than Counting By Fives

So the way I understand this, when you write your blog you should write about something you know a lot about.

Well let's see.... that would be home school, home school curriculum, dogs, cleaning, cooking, shopping, Meerkat Manor, and oh yea... pharmacy, that degree I spent 6 years getting.

So, here goes.

I recently read an email from a home school group that I am a part of. The lady has cancer and was struggling to find the meds that would help ease the pain. She had called and been by several pharmacies and none of them had the particular medicine she was looking for.

I'll tell you a little secret. The pharmacies probably did have the medicine they just didn't know her or her situation and thought she was a drug seeker. Drug seekers are the bane of our existence. We do everything we can to get rid of them. We even lie and tell people that we , in fact, don't carry that schedule 2 narcotic you're looking for. I know, I know... that's awful but we can't tell the difference between a cancer patient and a drugged out stoner especially if we have never even met you. Getting rid of one of those drug seekers usually involves law enforcement. It's just easier not to go there.

I'll tell you another secret, if you want your pharmacist to bend over backwards to help you, ( and believe me, they will) you just need to get to know them. Get to know the technicians. Get to know the cashiers. You won't have to worry about driving all over town looking for your pain meds because your buddy, the pharmacist, will do it for you. She'll know that you are suffering from stage 4 kidney cancer and she'll know that you don't have the "uumph" to drive all over town looking for the medicine. She'll call everywhere she can think of and vouch for you. She'll tell the other pharmacists that you are, in fact, not a drug seeker but a patient who is suffering from cancer who just needs her meds.

I'm not saying bribe the pharmacist. I'm saying be friendly. Strike up a conversation with them and only go to that one pharmacy.

Cancer isn't the only thing we're empathetic to. What about the mom who has a one year old on her hip screaming his bloody head off because he has a strep throat. As soon as the pharmacist tells her they don't have the medicine in stock the one year old decides to puke all over the floor. Now poor momma has to schlep this poor sick kid all over town looking for drugs.

I have known pharmacists and technicians who would move heaven and earth to help out a nice patient. They'll even risk catching hell from their employer for going above and beyond. I know I did.

This is a pharmacist friend of mine and me being goobers dressing up for Halloween at work.

Murphy and Bridgette

Murphy was the first dog David and I ever owned. He was my first baby and he loved my human babies! He took every opportunity he could to snuggle with them.

Murphy actually crawled up into Holley Kate's car seat and slept with her (Note the pen scribble on the picture...stinkin' kids and their stupid mama letting them play with pens).

Bridgette, on the other hand, was not the snuggly type but she loved us in her own unique grouchy way. There was never a dog to walk past our house that didn't get an earful from her.

Murphy and Bridgette both died last year.

Pet ownership is a crazy thing. Who would willingly put themselves in a situation where they knew they only had 10-15 years with something they would grow to love as one of their own?

Us.

We got two more. Thought we'd branch out and try a few different breeds. I now wake up with one under the covers ( the little one) and one on top of the covers (the big one) making it impossible to to pull the covers up. They both sore like freight trains ( smooshed snouts will do that ) and have copious amounts of gas ( I still can't figure that out).

But, I wouldn't have it any other way.

Pyromania & Daddyhood

Even though popular culture may portray men as nothing more than glorified sperm donors, nothing could be further from the truth. Men are such a vital part of the family. I've read many books that sight the significant role that fathers play in the healthy upbringing of both boys and girls. Dismissing their importance is dangerous. The relationship kids have with their fathers is as important to their psyche as healthy food is to growing strong, healthy bodies. Dads are a vital part of their life!

Dads have a way of parenting that moms just don't have.

Does that mean that I smile with enjoyment as my son initiates a punching fight with my husband at the dinner table? Do I giggle along when my husband hits back and tells Calvin to block and not get hit in the face?

Ummmm..... HECK NO!

I scream and holler for them to stop because they are probably going to knock over a tea glass.

What about when my daughter gets in one of her moods and he sends her to her room while she wails through the agony of it all?

Through the years I have tried to learn to relax and just let David parent. So what if somebody gets a little hurt. Nothing will be broken and a lesson will be learned; maybe the hands should have been covering the face and the gut ;0)

A few weeks ago I looked in the backyard and my kids were setting things on fire. WHAT?????? My husband was on the back porch grilling hamburgers and the kids were about 10 feet from him lighting up pieces of paper, leaves, sticks, and just anything they could find that was flammable.

I have to admit that this was waaaaaaaaay outside my comfort zone.

What if the kids burned themselves?

What if they thought it was ok to play with matches?

We were all taught not to play with matches.

What if they decided to burn something that shouldn't be burned?

What if they enjoyed playing with fire just a little bit too much.

Honestly, I thought my husband had lost his flippin' mind.

Turns out he hadn't. He was just doing what dads do best. I'd just forgotten to let him be a dad.