Monday, July 27, 2009

Visiting Paw-Paw and Maw-Maw






On Sunday after church we drove to Wilkesboro to visit family and enjoy some swiming in the family pool. Makenna was so excited that she wore her float around her neck while in the car. It was cousin Noah and Payten birthday party. Noah turns nine on Tuesday and Payten turned eight on July 18. They have always had there parties together. We enjoyed a cookout with cake and ice cream for dessert. Noah got a new puppy for his birthday and Makenna loved it. Makenna also enjoyed her first time on the trampoline and everyone loved hearing her saying I jump over and over again. They had Makenna a new float for the pooland she was so happy to float around by herself.

Thursday, July 23, 2009

Cooking for Daddy





Makenna loves her kitchen and making food for everyone. Makenna is always making Daddy a burger and some fruit. If you notice in the pictures she always blows her food and says hot.

Monday, July 20, 2009

Playing in the sprinkler






We sat up the sprinkler for Makenna to play in and she loved it. She would scream when the water would catch her.

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

How much do you matter?

Imagine with me for a minute…

Right now, today… you are small and alone.

You are hungry and lost.

You have no home, no parents, and seemingly no future.

You are scared, and weak, from days without food. You have no where to go, no where to be.

People walk by you but they don’t even look your way. It’s like you are invisible, nothing.

You keep walking, your feet are bleeding and sore… and yet still you manage to cling to the small bit of hope, the little voice inside your head that says maybe, just maybe, one day things will get better.

Maybe one day -you will matter.

It is getting dark outside- inside your fear is growing.

Where will you go?

Your heart is beating faster, and your fear becomes over whelming, consuming your every thought.

Then you see it, a dirty, broken cardboard box and you bow your head thanking God for His provision.

For you have found it- shelter.

Safety, if only for one night.

You slip underneath it, hugging yourself, vowing once again not to cry- because by now you know tears are a waste of your strength.

Your eyes become heavy, despite the sweltering temperature.

As you begin to drift off to sleep you pray, hoping, dreaming, of a family of your own one day...

of a place where you will matter...

to someone.



Half away around the world is a family...

They are just sitting down to dinner together.

They are smiling and their laughter fills the room.

Dinner is served and they bow their heads and they pray- thanking God for their many blessings… their home, their job, the food that is set before them.

They lift their heads and go back to the laughter and the joy.

They talk of their upcoming vacation plans, the lunch date they shared with a friend today and the movie they plan to see this coming weekend.

More laughter, more excitement, more.

As the leftovers are scraped into the garbage can and the table is cleaned up, hot bubble bathes are taken by all.

Evening settles in, and the family slips under their down comforters preparing for a good nights sleep.

Before turning out the lights, the husband leans over to kiss his wife good-night. She shyly smiles at him and begins to tell him that she has been feeling that perhaps God is calling them to adopt.

The room grows quiet as they are both lost in their own thoughts… their minds are flooded with questions, concern, and then inevitably -fear.

How could they manage?
Another child?
Why, they already have two!
Where would they put the child?
Who would share a room?
How could they afford to adopt?
Would they be able to take that vacation?
What would people think?
What if the child, you know, caused ‘problems’?

As their eyelids become heavy, they begin to drift off to sleep... and they think to themselves ‘surely not’.

Surely God knows this is not convenient.

Surely God wants them to take that vacation they deserve...

Surely he knows how busy they are.

They have plans and they have dreams.

As sleep overcomes them, the temperature in their master bedroom is perfect… and their pillows are fluffed to perfection.

Life is good for them, just as they had planned...

Because after all, they matter...


Too much...


to themselves.


"This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. This then is how we know that we belong to the truth, and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence whenever our hearts condemn us. "- 1 John 3:16-20


I found this on another blog and having been in tears since.

Monday, July 6, 2009

The Fourth of July






I can't believe that it is already July where has summer gone. We enjoyed the fourth with neighbors and had a wonderful time. The kids had a blast playing in the blow up pool. The food was delicious and then the fireworks was a big hit. I was afraid that Makenna would be scared of the noise I was so wrong she loved them and kept saying more. This was Makenna's first July 4th and I was thinking how sweet it is for her to say Happy Birthday America!

Thursday, July 2, 2009

Day 3 at beach



On Tuesday My aunt Cissy and Makenna fell in love and their was no one like aunt Cissy. My Dad and Mom was even a little jealous all Makenna would say is aunt Cissy all day long. Aunt Cissy even convidence Kenna to try the ocean again and she loved it and from then on we could not keep her out of it. This was the first vacation for my aunt without my uncle who passed away a month after we returned home from China. My aunt did really well knowing that they always vacationed with my Mom and Dad. My Dad has never really accepted that his brother was gone until now it was a very hard week for him. My aunt started crying on the beach one day holding Kenna because my uncle never got to meet her in person only seen pictures. All she said was I know how much he would have loved getting to know her. She had everyone a little upset when she mentioned this. He loved Josh and Kayla so much and they miss him so much and recalled everything that he would do with them on the Beach.