I made the muffins

I dreamt of Jess's muffins last night.  I woke up this morning and made them and they are wonderful.  Marya helped me make them.  We love to cook together.  I bet the muffins would be great with spiced tea but it is too hot here for tea.  I long for cold weather.  Jess, thank you for the recipe I love them!!!!!!!

Puppy

Tired from his long trip from Michigon

Hanging out with big daddy

Shyhlah and Kota bear meet for the first time

Marya holding her new baby after his first bath

Well we got a new puppy this weekend and we are in love with him. He is also a Siberian Indian Dog like Shylah. Which means he is part Siberian Husky and Native American Indian Dog. We love this breed for many reasons. They shed very little, they are big, they are hypoallergenic, they have no doggy smell, they have dry mouths, are great with children and other animals, very smart and loving. His name is Dakota and we call him Kota Bear. He looks like a little bear cub. Dakota and Shylah both mean friend. Marya and Ezra both like to go to their bedroom with the dogs and just hang out. My kids need no other toys, just their dogs. They are playing outside with them right now. He follows Ezra everywhere. He is inside most of the time and has not had an accident yet.

Celebration

Today is a day to celebrate for us. We got our immigration papers back and sent them in to the adoption agency today. This is our last bit of paper work for the dossier and we have been waiting months for this. We have been so excited and celebrating today. All of you that know me know that doing all this paper work and being organized is very difficult for me. I feel like I just ran a marathon getting through all of this paper work. We started this last Feb. and are just coming to the end of the paper work side of it. I am sure there will be a few more things we have to do but I am so thankful to God for equipping me to do this. I feel one step closer to our children. I am sitting outside watching the kids play and just Praising God for who He is. What a lesson in waiting this has been. Those of you that don't know, this is our second time around at the adoption paper work. Before I got pregnant with Ezra we were trying to adopt a little boy from Vietnam. We had started all of our paper work but never got this far. When we got pregnant with Ezra we had to stop the process. I some times fear that God will also stop this process. I am confident that He will prepare me for what is ahead and that His grace will be sufficient.
What is next? Our paper work will be sent to Ethiopia and be translated and then we will wait for our referrals. So we have some more waiting to do. As we wait we pray for the children every day. I have asked Marya to pray about giving some of her animals to her new siblings and she is not so sure about that. I am praying that God will soften her heart towards her siblings and she will give and never look back. I do love to hear her pray for the kids in Opiopia as she calls it.

New nephew

Today my sister gave birth to her third child, a boy named Jesse David. It is so hard not to be there but we are overjoyed for them.

Like Father like son

Whenever Jake is around, Ezra follows him around and copies him, it is so precious.  He wants to be just like his daddy and I love to watch it.  Last night Jake was on the computer and Ezra was right by him and I believe the Lord used this picture to speak to me.  As I was watching Ezra follow and copy his daddy and learn from his daddy I thought of Christ.  I must know my heavenly Father and follow Him and copy Him.  To know God I must spend time with Him and learn from His ways and conform to the likeness of Christ.  Jesus was fully God and fully man (Col. 2:9).  We have the perfect example to learn from and look to.  It was just a beautiful picture for me. I am so thankful for how God speaks to us through our children so often.  Now Marya copies me a lot and lets just say she often shows me my sin.  She keeps me crying out to God for wisdom and strength every day, I am so thankful for her my wild girl.

Romans 8:29

  For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren

Humility

Today in small group we were studying John chapter three.  We spent a lot of time talking of John the Baptist and his humility.  Our leader Phil Baggett said a phrase that I have really been thinking about.  HE said humility is not thinking less of yourself it is forgetting yourself.  I loved that and was so convicted.  Although we may sit around and think of how little we are or be self-focused and get depressed, that is not humility.  We must forget ourselves and look to Christ.  We can spend so much time thinking about how insignificant we are, that we forget Christ.  I know God has shown me that there is nothing I have that I have not received, and that I cannot take a breath without Him, but my focus is still too often on myself.  I love the idea of forgetting myself, I love it!!!!!!  I know I will forget myself when I see Christ for the first time.  

I hope you all had a great weekend.

New Pictures

Great friends, Ian, Evan and Rowan Washer. They have a great time together!

Marya and Ezra love to give Azariah kisses, we are all so happy he is finally here.

Marya's friend Carson, he is taking her to get a drink, such a sweet friend.

Marya and Ezra love to get in the dryer.

Marya's friends Jasmine and Halli, they are great friends for her. Such sweet, sweet girls.