10 years. A Decade?

I don't know for sure how it happened or when it happened... but my baby got big.
Real big.
10 years ago today we were terrified new parents as we welcomed into this world a 3lb baby boy. 

3lbs 6oz that forever changed us

He was small, but he never failed to let us know that he was the one in charge.

A very proud daddy of a very small baby

 Today, he is not so small, and neither is the joy he brings us.

Jackson, you make us laugh til we cry and if we cry you make sure we end in laughter.

Your sarcastic humor that we all know is from me never ceases to amaze me. Or frighten me.

Your heart of gold is a treasure and I pray that you will never lose that.

TEN YEARS?! I don't know how it happened, but it has been a joy to watch you grow and to see God at work in you. I look forward to watching you for the next several decades. I know they're going to be great.



Jackson's 9th birthday

And maybe, just maybe, you'll pose for another picture with your mama. Please?

This is my STORY, This is my song...

Well just last week I posted here sharing my ONE WORD. My word is STORY. I said that God was busy writing my story and I was struggling to read it.

What a difference a day makes.

Our story has changed dramatically. The cast of characters added to and switched up a bit.

2 years ago I started this blog as a way to keep friends and family updated on our journey into foster-adoption. Thus far it's been a rather uneventful journey and this blog has moved on to many more things. Which is great, but I never forgot why I started it. We wanted to expand our family. We prayed about how to do that. We were led to fostering. And then the story seemed to stop. Like an unfinished manuscript sitting on the shelf collecting dust.  Picked up and thumbed through occasionally, but put back to collect more dust. No more story to tell yet. That's where I felt we were left.

We were at the point of looking into other adoption options. Do we go overseas? Do we give up? Prayers went up. My daughter asked many times when it would be OUR turn to have a baby... or toddler.

What a difference a day makes.

Our manuscript has been dusted off... a new story line enters in...

Friday afternoon around 2:00 we received a call and I said some sarcastic things in my head as I knew the number well. It usually tore me to pieces by the time I hung up. This one was different. A baby needs a home... now. Long term. Prefer dual licensed home because, well, the odds of custody being restored are slim. Two hours later I opened the door to a sweet little 3 month old boy with a very bald head and 2 kissable dimples. This little man has stolen our hearts in such a little time. My kids are thrilled, being excellent helpers and my dear husband struts around with a new little one in his arms. We know that this may be temporary. We know that our hearts may be broken. But we know that right now this little man needs love and care and we have that in abundance. Right now, we trust in God that He will guard our hearts and if we need to give him back, God will still be there to uphold us all. And that will be another story.

I am also constantly reminded of another story...in another series that is now running into ours. The mom's story. Its a sad and difficult story. I pray that she may have a happy ending to her story and that she finds the One who makes the stories worth living. I know that her happy ending may result in our sad ending. But I trust in God to take care of us. And to take care of this sweet baby. It is his story that has taken over our lives.

I will share as much of our story as I can with you all. But much cannot be told of mom and baby's story. Join us in prayer for the mom as she is dealing with life. Prayer for us as we adjust to life with a new baby. Prayer for the social workers and judges who have to make decisions for this sweet man.

Now, excuse me, there's a little guy who's waiting for some kisses...

2 Weeks Later and I Have Just 1 Word.

So... When I opened my blog page this morning, it was still wishing me a Merry Christmas. Yikes! Time to get back at it! I will say that I had a great week plus of stepping back from my computer keeping my cell phone tucked away in my bedroom where I wouldn't check it constantly. It was amazing how much more face time I got with my family.

But now they're back in their routines, so I should be too.

Happy New Year! Okay, so I'm a little bit late with that too. Do you make Resolutions each year? I will be honest, I do not. I really don't enjoy knowing at the beginning of the year what I will feel guilty about come July. Or February. I am no good at sticking with resolutions. Having said that, I do try many times throughout the year to improve myself or become a better person. I just don't save it for January 1.

So, what to do instead? I was reading my good ol' friend Bina's blog last week ( yeah I snuck in a blog read now and then, so sue me) and she introduced me to the idea of a word of the year.Alece at Grit and Glory actually came up with it and I am jumping on.  One. Word. Not a sentence or a paragraph or an explanation. But ONE. WORD. to be your theme. I have done a verse a year, but never a single word.

I like it. I can try this, I decided. But what word?? Hers was "believe". Ooohh.. Yeah, I like that one... oh, I should come up with my own huh? That was where I was worried. So, of course, I went to God. What should my word of the year be? What do you want me to work on this year? What word can I do for YOU, Lord?
I let my prayer go and went about my business. As I drove home from Nebraska Monday morning, I ended up doing what I always do... humming a song. Not just any song. The same song that is always in my head. When I mow, when I clean, when I drive, when I shop. I don't know why, it just is always there. And that is when God gave me my word for the year.

Story.

 I don't claim to know why He chose this word for me. I do know that I love a good story. I know that everyone has there own story. I know that God is the author of those stories. I know that God is working hard to help me write my own story. Or I'm working hard to read it, I'm not sure which.

I will come back to this word often in the coming year and see what God's been up to with my word.
Will you join in in seeking God's word for your year? What would your year be?

Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!

Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine!
Heir of salvation, purchase of God,
Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood.
This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long;
This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long