From Jonestown, With Love

Our dear friend, Paula Kissinger, created these one-of-a-kind gifts for our children this year.  Thank you so much, Paula, for your love and creativity!  These photos are for you!

From Iquique, With Love

My sister Stephanie and her family are missionaries in Iquique, Chile.  They sent back some gifts with our parents after their trip to Chile in November.  Thanks, Garcia family, for thinking of us!  These photos are for you!

Christmas 2013, Part 3

Dave says his favorite part of Christmas morning is watching the kids open their stockings.  I hate wrapping those little gifts, but the joy of seeing the kids dig in and find their little gems is worth the hours of labor.  :)

This year Sophia sort of got the idea of opening gifts...after she chucked a few across the room, that is.  Overall, however, she did seem to remember what we do on Christmas morning, and wasn't quite so overwhelmed as the last couple of years.  Hard to believe this was her third Christmas with us already!

One of our children was missing again this year.  This is Jonathan's second year in a residential treatment facility over Christmas.  Dave and I were able to visit with him the Saturday before Christmas and give him a couple of gifts.  We continue to pray that God will heal his mind and heart and that someday, he will be able to enjoy Christmas with the family again.

Christmas 2013, Part 2

One of our annual traditions is the opening of one gift on Christmas Eve...new Christmas pajamas.  And, of course, the requisite photo must be taken in the pajamas in front of the tree.  This year I didn't try to be matchy-matchy with everyone, much to Sabastian's relief.  And, of course, I couldn't get all of them looking in one direction, either, so thus, two photos to share with you.  Sigh.  Maybe one of these Christmases...

Christmas 2013, Part 1

It's hard to believe that we are at the end of 2013 already!  I have been a neglectful blogger this year...but I have plans for this blog in the new year, so stay tuned!

This Christmas was a blessed one, yet again.  For the second year in a row Dave is unemployed at the end of the year, yet we have seen God's grace so clearly and freely given to us.  Every gift under our tree was given to us by a friend, family member, or total stranger this year.  I bought the items that filled their stockings, as is our tradition, but the gifts were blessings from God given through others.  As I mentioned on Facebook on Christmas day, the lessons learned through our times of unemployment could not have been learned any other way, and the blessings from those lessons are worth more then any job.  Praise the Lord!  God has been working in our lives in very specific ways this year (which is a blog post unto itself!) and we are so thankful!

One of our special friends is Nancy.  We met at church and she just adopted our family as her own.  She has been such a blessing to us in so many ways.  When Nathaniel said he wanted to make cut out cookies and gingerbread men this Christmas, I knew Nancy, as a former home economics teacher, would love to help us out.  We enjoyed a fun morning together, and Nathaniel was in his glory.  We might have a future chef on our hands!

Mid-Summer (Almost!) Post

In four days, this handsome young man and I will be boarding an airplane bound for Santiago, Chile, Lord willing.  If you were to ask me about my summer agenda a couple of months ago, my answer would not have included a trip to South America, but God had other plans.  Thanks to the prayers and generosity of many friends and family, God provided for Benjamin and me to take this trip in order to serve the Lord in various ways, including in service teaching at my high school alma mater, Santiago Christian Academy.  It is Benjamin's first time in an airplane, and he is excited to be spending time with his cousins in Chile.  It is really the highlight of his summer vacation, but he has also enjoyed swimming in our little backyard pool and studying the various species of ants in our yard.

This young man just returned from a week of camp at Camp Conquest in Lancaster County.  He has been attending camp there since he was in second or third grade, and this was his last opportunity to be a camper, due to his age.  He has worked a lot this summer in a variety of jobs, and has graciously taken his dear old parents on "dates" to the movies with his earnings.  While I'm in Chile, he will be attending a basketball camp at Messiah College and helping his grandparents care for his younger two siblings.  I think all in all, it's been a good summer thus far for Sabastian!

Nathaniel has another hole in his head, as he lost his second tooth just last week!  He is enjoying his backyard swimming pool, too, and has learned to hold his breath under water and swim around with his goggles on.  I'm going to miss this little guy while I'm in Chile, as he tells me several times a day, "I love you, Mommy."  We are working on writing his loooong name and reviewing his letters and sounds in anticipation of kindergarten at our home school in the fall.

And then there's Sophia.  Home for two years earlier this summer, she is growing and maturing, albeit at her own sweet pace!  Hopefully she will be as excited as this when she realizes she is spending almost three weeks at her grandparents' home beginning this Tuesday!  She amuses herself in a variety of ways during the day, but truly loves to be out and about with the family.  She is much more interested at being outside these days, and we have to watch that she doesn't run out into the road before she gets into the house after disembarking the van!  She certainly keeps us on our toes!

And as for my sweet hubby, he will be holding down the fort and working hard to meet the needs of our family.  His job is going well, but is very physically demanding, especially in the heat we've been having.  I'm very thankful for Dave and his commitment to me and the kids.  Lord willing, he will be visiting our oldest son, Jonathan, while I'm away.  It will be the first time Jonathan has sat down and talked with one of us face to face in almost a year.  It will be good for both of them.

Many thanks to my dear friend and sister in Christ, Naomi Atkins, for taking these lovely photos of our family earlier this summer.  You can find her and her partner's work on Facebook or their blog.  We highly recommend them!  Happy rest of the summer to all!

Our 2013 Summer Bucket List

Our last day of home schooling for the year, and Sabastian's last day of school, was Friday.  So, Monday was our official first day of summer vacation!  To celebrate, we made our Summer Bucket List of activities that we would like to try and do during the course of the summer.  I found the idea at this site and we printed the list and got to work choosing our summer fun.  We actually checked off most of the ideas on the list, and then added a few of our own.  Monday evening we went to the store and picked up a few cheap items to help us accomplish some items on our list, like water guns, a small pool, and a few pool noodles (the latter of which is not for what you might think!).

On Tuesday, we were able to check off swimming (in our little kiddie pool, but who cares?) and water guns.  I'm sure they will actually be almost daily occurrences when the weather cooperates.  On Wednesday, we checked off strawberry picking and play date with friends at the park.  We have been super blessed with wonderfully cool weather for summer the last couple of days, which made it very nice to be outside.  Here are some photos from our adventures!

First Kiss

Today she gave me my first kiss...ever...almost two years after we became mother and daughter.  It came as many of her "firsts" have...suddenly, unexpectedly, blink and you miss it.  It gave me hope for other "firsts" we have yet to see and hear.  Interestingly, she kissed my cheek while holding the little white dress her foster mother had her dressed in the day she became ours forever. Makes me wonder what she remembers...hopefully someday she will be able to tell me...another "first".  But today, she gave me my first kiss.

In Memoriam...Rushing Russia

Last night a beloved member of our family passed away.  Russia (a Russian hamster...thus the name!) was a part of our family for almost two years.  Russia "belonged" to Benjamin; she was his first real pet, aside from our family cats.  She was a spur of the moment purchase one evening as Benjamin and I were perusing Pet Smart, as she reminded me of my beloved childhood hamster, Hammy.  She was an albino, just like he was, and, like Hammy, she loved to climb the walls of her cage and try to cross the top upside down.  She earned her nickname, "Rushing Russia", because she loved to run on her wheel--and run through the house on her myriad escapee adventures!  She lived to the average age of hamsters, and in people years, was over 70 years old.  (That last piece of information, garnered from the internet, really seemed to put her death into perspective for Benjamin.)  We all loved little Russia, and she will be greatly missed.

Rest in peace, Rushing Russia!

You can read more about Russia on Benjamin's blog, where he wrote several posts about his special pet:

http://www.brilliantblogbyben.blogspot.com/2012/10/russia-update-in-captions.html

http://www.brilliantblogbyben.blogspot.com/2012/07/russias-demo.html

http://www.brilliantblogbyben.blogspot.com/2012/05/rushing-russia-update.html

http://www.brilliantblogbyben.blogspot.com/2011/12/russias-new-cage.html

http://www.brilliantblogbyben.blogspot.com/2011/10/russia.html

Happy 8th Birthday, Benjamin!

Dear Benjamin,

Today, on your 8th birthday, I wanted to tell you how special you are and how much you are loved.  You were our first miracle baby, a total surprise after we were told by many doctors that we would be unable to have biological children.  Every day you amaze us with your ingenuity, creativity, sincerity, and compassion for others.  Daddy and I pray that you will never lose that boyish enthusiasm for life or the compassionate servant's heart that God has given you.  Your goals for life right now include building churches around the world for missionaries to be able to share about Jesus, and building cities so that everyone can have a home to live in that is inexpensive to maintain.  You want everyone to have enough food and shelter.  Your heart amazes me.  I can't wait to see what God's plans for your life include!  I love that you still want to snuggle with your mama, and every once and awhile, you still pick up that dingy white favorite blankie and take it to bed with you.  You love your brothers and sister, and you enjoy helping around the house, especially with the laundry.  And you always remind me when I forget to give you your $2 allowance!  You enjoy ink pen drawing (you are constantly designing new cities!) and playing your weekend video game time.  But your most favorite activity would be building things, and this year, we hope to help you do more of that!

You are a special young man, and I love you so much.  Trust in the Lord with all your heart, Benjamin, and He will direct your paths!

Love,

Mommy

Happy 18th Birthday, Jonathan!

Jonathan rarely allowed himself to be photographed,
thus the date on this one!

Today is our oldest son's 18th birthday.  When we first met Jonathan, he was 6 years old...almost 7.  My how time has flown by!  Jonathan is a senior in high school this year and doing well by all accounts.  He has taken up crocheting in his spare time, as well as reading and listening to music.

The following post was written on December 26. I didn't post it then, but for those who are interested, you can read it now.  It pertains to Jonathan.  It is entitled, "When Love is Not Enough".

Happy 18th Birthday, Jonathan...we miss you and love you very much!!

--------------------------------------------------------

I've been mulling over this post for quite some time now.  It's hard to put it into words, but I know someone, somewhere, needs to read this.  You see, sometimes, love just is not enough.

Yesterday was a happy day at our house, filled with love, joy, gifts, good food, and family.  Except for one.  You see, our oldest son, who turns 18 in just a few short days, will not be in any of our Christmas pictures this year.  He does not live with us right now, and hasn't for over three months. The reality is, he may never live with us again, but most certainly not for at least a year.  Out of respect for his privacy, I won't go into detail here about the why, but he is in a residential treatment program.  Prior to that, he spent three weeks in juvenile detention.  Prior to that, he and his choices wrecked havoc on our family for 9 months of 2012.  Harsh?  Maybe, but it's the truth.

What's also true is that I love my son very much.  He became a part of our family when he was six years old.  For almost 11 years we loved him and taught him and guided him and loved him some more.  But it wasn't enough.  It wasn't enough to break the hold his past has on his heart and spirit.  We don't know exactly what has a hold on him, but we know he and his biological brother are what are called in the adoption world, "wounded children".  There are many books written on how to "love the wounded child" and "parent the wounded child".  But sometimes, love is not enough.

We went to visit our son yesterday with my parents, his grandparents.  We drove 45 minutes one way to the facility only to be "refused" by our son.  He has rights, too, you know, and his refusal to have contact with us is his trump card right now.  But we wanted him to know that we loved him, and so we made the trip anyway, in hopes that maybe, he would change his mind.  But he didn't.  And it was hard.  Very hard.  For sometimes, love is not enough.

Where am I going with this post?  I don't know.  Except to say that adoption and parenting, and especially adoption parenting, is tough.  Sometimes, really tough.  But even if our son chooses to never see us again, I believe that he was placed in our lives for a reason.  I also believe that we have loved him the best way that we knew how, and it was our love that pushed for him to have this one last chance before "adulthood" to get help for his wounded heart.  Will he understand that one day?  I hope so.  But for now, we face the reality that sometimes, our love is not enough.

But we pray that, someday, our son WILL recognize that GOD'S LOVE is ALWAYS enough.

My Little Angel

Last Sunday, Sophia's class made these really neat angel wings out of paper plates.  They actually have elastics where the arms go through so they can be worn for dressing up.  Of course, Sophia wasn't really into them at all, but Nathaniel was!  He wanted to try them on right away, so I took some photos by our Christmas tree of our little angel.  Enjoy!

I just can't get enough of those baby blues!!

Flying...

My little angel!

Happy 5th Birthday, Sophia!

Our beautiful Taiwanese princess turns 5 years old today!  We are so proud of all of her accomplishments in the past year.  She started school almost a year ago, and loves it!  She has made progress with the use of her right hand and arm after two rounds of botox and occupational therapy.  She is making more and more vocalizations which every now and then approximate words.  She is even "singing" at times, which we love to hear, and she has recently started Music Therapy which she really enjoys.  She loves her Sunday School and Word of Life classes at church, and her favorite toys are her baby dolls and her grocery cart--which she pushes through the house at breakneck speeds!  Sophia brings us much joy and we can't wait to see what next year brings!

What's Missing?

First tooth...lost at five years of age (with a little help from his big brother!)

Gettysburg Field Trip

Last Friday (which seems like eons ago what with the craziness of this week's storm!), Benjamin and I went on a field trip to Gettysburg, PA.  We had planned this trip for awhile with my sisters and their home schooled children.  Both of my sisters live overseas most of the time, so cramming U.S. History information and trips was a priority for them these last several months.  I happen to love visiting Gettysburg, but had not been there since the new visitor's center was completed.  So I was more than happy to introduce Benjamin to the Battle of Gettysburg.

After a quick stop for breakfast, we started our day at the new Visitor's Center and Museum.  It was AWESOME!  The movie they show was fantastic...so well done.  It prepared you perfectly for the layout of the museum and what you were going to experience as you walked through the labyrinth of exhibits.  From the movie we went to the Cyclorama of Pickett's Charge.  If you have never seen this, it is so worth the trip!  There are only two of these 360 degree paintings left in our country.  They used to travel with these paintings around the country before motion pictures and television in order to show people the scenes of famous battles and such.  That in and of itself was an education for our kiddos!

Since the battlefield at Gettysburg is part of a national park, we took advantage of the Junior Ranger program and Benjamin and I worked through several of the activities in the booklet we were given to help him learn the basics of the battle and life in the 1860's.  I think I get more excited about the Junior Ranger activities then Benjamin!  (It's the teacher in me!)  The booklet was geared to match the new museum and its layout perfectly.  We went through each day of the battle and looked for various items in the displays.  I learned a lot of interesting, new information.  The quantity of artifacts they have is quite astounding.  I was very impressed at how they really tried to help visitors see the faces behind the battle.  There were real people with real lives and real families who fought and died on the picturesque fields of Gettysburg those first three days of July, 1863.

After the museum and Visitor's Center, we ate a quick lunch, then headed to the wax museum where we caught our 1930's Ford Tour Car for the Kids' Tour of the Gettysburg Battlefield.  Our guide was fantastic, stopping here and there to share some "behind the scenes" tidbits for the kids...and the adults! He took us through the battlefield chronologically, which was great for the kids since we had just been through the museum which was set up chronologically.  Prior to leaving the wax museum for the tour, he also taught the kids about muskets and the nine steps to loading and shooting them.  It was amazing to think that the soldiers could shoot those three times in a minute given how difficult it was!

When we returned from our tour (2 1/2 hours...well worth it!) we took a quick trip to the cemetery where Abraham Lincoln gave his Gettysburg Address.  All of the cousins know that we are related to Abraham Lincoln (actually one of his brothers) so they have a strong affinity for our 16th president.  The day was coming to an end as we quietly walked through the cemetery, looking at the hundreds of headstones representing men and women who gave their lives for our freedom throughout the history of our great nation.

I was struck again by all of the "Unknown" engravings on headstones in the section of the cemetery dedicated to those who fought and died in the Battle of Gettysburg.  Each one of them represents a family who never learned the fate of their loved one.  I can't even imagine that.

Benjamin and I parted ways with my sisters after the cemetery and headed home.  We debriefed a little in the car, and I was happy with what Benjamin had taken from the day.  His favorite part was roaming the rocky terrain of Little Round Top, darting in and out from behind the boulders which would have shielded the Union forces on that fateful second day of battle.  The views from there were amazing last week.  I heard one guide share with his group how the whole battlefield could be seen from that vantage point.  Left undefended or taken in battle by the Confederates, the outcome of the Civil War would have been very different had the Union forces not held that hill.  A sobering thought...

I couldn't help but think about the historic times in which we live today, and how we are on the eve of a very important election which has the potential of determining the future fate of our great land as I revisited the life and times leading up to the Great Civil War.  Of course a lot has changed since then, but in other ways, I can't help but feel that we have not learned the lessons that we should have as a nation.  I can only hope and pray that, in the words of President Lincoln, those "dead shall not have died in vain -- that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom -- and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth."

God Bless America!

P.S.  You can check out my sister's post on our trip here:  http://www.garcias2chile.blogspot.com/2012/10/gettysburg.html