Setting my Worries Aside

Today was not a great day. It started off so terribly. On our way to VBS (Vacation Bible School), the car overheated. The only car that fits our family. It was frustrating and we almost just turned around.

So many little things have happened this week and they've added up to be bigger. Do you ever have days or weeks like that? Nothing huge happens but the stack of little things amount to something so much more?

On my way to pick the kids up from VBS I told my mother in law "something big is going to happen in my kids this week because the enemy clearly does not want them here".

People! Are you ready for my big?

Okay, so let's back track a little here. Our 3 year old has autism. If you've been around here for a while you know that. Do you all know a lot about autism though? I still really don't fully understand what it means. I mean, it is really something different for every kid, so how can we really comprehend it?

For our little guy, it means lots of things. Some things are harder than others. A really hard aspect for us is relationship. Nixon desires to be social but doesn't always get it.  I mean he has come a long way but he still is at a loss in a lot of areas. 

He has a hard time reading emotion. He can mimic and makes an attempt to piece together the faces we show him on flash cards to real life emotion. He tries playing with other kids but doesn't really grasp friendships or relationships.

Seeing your child struggle to make connections and wondering if he will ever really have friends is hard. What is harder and scarier though is wondering if he will ever comprehend God. If he struggles with relationships when people are right in front of him, how will he ever understand a God who he cannot see? How do we teach him about the love of our savior if he doesn't even understand our love? We worry and pray about it often. 

Enough back story now. Back to the "big" thing. As I asked the kids about what they had learned today, before the others could respond, Nixon belts out "Jesus". This is like the go to answer for kids in church but not THIS kid. His answer was a big deal. It gets bigger though. Surprised, I say "What about Jesus?" and proud as can be, yet totally nonchalantly he says "he my friend". Say what? That's right you guys, his friend!

Do I think that he really understands? I don't know. I think as much as a 3 year old can, he does. What I am realizing though is this: God does not have the boundaries that we do. He does not operate in the same ways that we do. He can penetrate the heart of a child whose brain may not understand. How silly are we to limit God?

How often do I fear the unknown and doubt what God can do? Why do we insist on telling God what He can do? 

It is time to stop worrying and trust that God has this. I encourage you all, whatever is burdening you today, hand it over. Don't give up or count it as a loss so quickly. God is there. He has always been there. Even when we doubt. Even when we fear. He is there, ready to carry our burden and worry and sorrow for us. He WILL meet us where we are. As He is doing for Nixon, he will work around the things that hold us back. We just have to be willing to listen, to wait, to trust Him. 

Can we all do that? And can you remind me tomorrow when my worry creeps back in? 

Following the Call

If you were to look at our daily life before little man and compare it to today, you may think you were looking at two different families. Before he was placed in our home we had weekly play dates, trips to the park and were rarely home. For a few months we were able to keep that up. Things slowly changed.

Most of our days are spent at home. Going out is stressful. It's hard and it wears me down. I feel like people look and judge us so much when we are out. I've always had the easy kids. The go with the flow kids. Now I have "that kid". And having "that kid" means the other ones act out more too. They want the attention he gets. I'm not complaining (too much). It's not his fault. Every action made by him has a direct link to his life before us. I could write a whole post on why people shouldn't jump to conclusions when "that kid" enters the store but that's for another time.

Recertification

During our social worker visit this week, I was reminded that our recertification is due. That basically means we have hours of training that are due as well as some updated info and forms to submit. It means we need a new home eval. ::enter panic attack here::

After the initial panic of having to reprep the house for someone to come look through, I realized that a recertification being due means that we have been certified for a year now. We have been licensed for a year! It seems so recent that our little man was placed with us.

It got me thinking back to the 6 days we waited for a phone call. It is so odd to wait for someone to call you and tell you that you have a child. So scary to know what may come your way. What trauma your future child may have endured.

I remember the thoughts that ran through my head when we were officially certified. Were we ready for this? Were we really prepared for what God called us to?

Looking back on my fears, my excitement and all other emotions that ran wild I thought about the question "Is this what we expected it to be?"

My answer is not a clear cut yes or no. In so many ways I look at what we were taught and think that we were prepared for the worse and came out with the best case scenario. In other areas, I see that I could never have prepared myself for where we are.

There are days I forget I am a foster mom. There are others when the blatant reminders crush me. There are times that I think we are ready to quit (without returning little man of course lol) and there are days that I just know we will do this forever.

But is it what I expected when we signed the first form? I don't know. I don't know what we really expected to begin with. We came into this with faith and a calling. That's basically where we still stand. Answering God's call and waiting for Him to point us where He wants us to go.

Will we continue fostering after Little Man? Only God knows. We were called to adopt a child through foster care. We are hoping that child is Little Man. If it is not, we will move forward. If it is, I don't know where we will go. We may foster more. We may just advocate for foster children. It is scary being so unsure. It's scary not knowing where our family will go from here. There is comfort in Christ though. Comfort in knowing that God has it all figured out.

For now, we pray. We take is one recertification at a time. We strive to be a voice for the child who does not have one. And we run to get our house together in time for our social worker. Ahhhhh!!!!!

Come back tomorrow for a recap of our first year.

Pray for Luke

There are people we meet or come across that "just have something about them". Something that draws people in. They bring joy. They radiate love.

There's the little old lady that brings cookies to everyone she knows. The man in the store who looks just like Santa and will even make a grand story for your child. There is the kid with the contagious smile and laugh that melts you.

The kid in this instance is Luke. Without even meeting him you love him and want to squeeze him, right?

Luke is the perfect example of "there's just something about him".

He brings joy everywhere he goes. You just know that he is destined for great things. To move people with just his smile. 

In this moment though, Luke needs us. He needs our prayers. 

This past Sunday, my sweet friend Chelle took her precious 2 year old to Urgent Care for a fever that lasted 4 days. She needed him better for her sisters wedding this weekend. 

Luke and Mommy, Michelle

Instead of being prescribed antibiotics, within 24 hours, this sweet child was diagnosed with AML. A rare form of leukemia that will require 6 months of aggressive chemo.

A diagnosis and treatment that no child should have to face but sweet Lukey is still showing his smile on his Facebook page. 

We are asking now that you all join us in praying for Luke. Pray for a complete healing. For strength and for comfort. For his parents and big brother Jeremiah.. Pray, Pray and Pray some more.

If you would like to follow along with Luke's journey, his mama has set up a page where you can hear the latest news and specific prayer requests. To visit, Click HERE

Our Mission Field

We are foster parents.

We started fostering while we already had two small children at home.

Children who don't quite understand and whose innocence we still needed to protect.

When we accepted our first placement (you know him as little man) we decided to share a little bit with our kids about foster care. Only enough that they would understand that the child they knew as their brother could one day leave our home. We worked and prayed hard to find the right words. The words that would inform but not rob them of innocence.

Not knowing what our cases would look like, we simply told the kids that the babies who came to stay with us had another mommy and daddy who couldn't take care of them right now. That we didn't know their situation yet but they might be sick or have to go away for a little while. If they got better and were able to take care of the baby, the baby would go home. If the mommy and daddy stayed sick or in another place then the baby would stay with us forever.

Talon who is still only two, had no clue what we were talking about. Rhiannon who is 4, seemed to understand quite well. She is proud to be a foster family. She informs people often that Little Man is our foster baby but he is still her brother right now. When she grows up she wants only one baby to come from her belly and the rest will be foster babies. She wants to love and help the babies and their mommies. 

She got it. We were good. We thought.

Then this week as we talked about the new baby coming soon, As we shared our joy of baby Corbin, a look of fear washed over her. She looked at me and stated sadly "and if you and daddy get sick, he will go live with another family".

My heart broke. While trying to protect her we put fear in her little heart. We had explain a little bit more about Little Mans family. We spared as much detail as we could.  It was still more than we wanted to say.

The truth is, we live in a broken world. We live in a world full of scary and not so nice things. Things no child should have to try to understand. 

We speak often about how our home is a mission field. By being foster parents we are reaching out to a broken world starting right within our own walls. This is the first time our lives have really had the effect of it all. It was rough.

As I sat saddened by the fact that my four year old had to hear of some of these things, my heart ached. It ached even more thinking of how my one year old has had to live through them. He had to witness them first hand. 

Our baby who is only one has lived and seen more of this broken world than many adults. He didn't have parents who were protecting his innocence. 

But he does now. 

Our children need to be protected. They need to be allowed to believe in a world that is better. 

They also need to understand that we live in a broken world. A world that needs Jesus. That they are the light that can shine for Him. 

I just wish it could start later than four years old.

My girl knows The Lord though. She knows that she loves Him and He loves her. She wants to serve Him. She already desires to mother orphans. To follow His will. 

Foster care is tough but it has built us up. It has helped us grow. To serve. To love. It has molded and shaped all of us. 

It has done this by breaking us first. We have to surrender daily. We have to seek The Lord regularly. He have to be ready to hear from Him and trust in Him to help us answer even the tough questions. 

When the Surrender is Tough

Sometimes it is hard to have faith. Sometimes the world seems like it is crashing down on us. There are times when surrendering things to God is the hardest thing you have to do. There are moments when the possible outcomes look so horrendous that you would like to run a million miles away from where you are.

This week was one of those times. This week I received a phone call that stopped me in my tracks. That took me from a place of joy to complete and utter panic.

As I sat in bed and wept, I found myself praying that God would remove us from this place. That He would keep us all safely together. That God would take away this fear.

While I prayed, I felt a subtle reminder of a message our pastor shared recently. We should not be praying for safety but instead for boldness. God does not call us to play it safe. He surely did not want us to play it safe when He led us into this world of foster care.


God calls us to be bold.

What does that even mean?

I can't tell you much about our personal journey in foster care (yes, I know I sound like a broken record saying that all the time). I can tell you that we are part of a system that is broken. Seeing a little bit of the inside of this world, I am amazed. Things are not working. The system needs to be fixed. These kids need to be fought for.

How would praying for our safety help that? It wouldn't. We need to be bold. We need to fight. Not only for Little Man but for all of the kids in this warped world.

Boldness. Standing up for what is right. Standing strongly and distinctly.

The world pushes us down. Satan wants us to live in fear. I say, we take that fear and use it to our advantage. The more afraid we are, the harder we fight.

In our current state, I am referring to foster care. The fight to keep our child or make sure he goes to a safe home.

For you it could be anything; a job loss, missions, leadership.

Let's be bold. Let's fight. Let's use our fears to rock this world for the Kingdom.

We don't have to be held down by fear anymore. We can surrender our worries before the Lord and ask to be used in mighty ways. We don't need to run away but straight at the issues that want to keep us far from God's plan.

My Our worlds might be crashing down on us but I serve a God that already has victory over this world. He can help us put the pieces back together. The puzzle may not fit the way we think it should but with Him, it will fit more beautifully than we ever imagined.

Heaven is a Dance Floor

Our God is a party throwing God. He celebrates when we come to Him. He rejoices with us. Isn't that what worship really is? Us falling at the feet of Jesus in celebration of what He has done, what He has given us. He meets us in that place.

In the years since I have been saved I have often felt left out by those around me partying. By radically changing my life for Christ, I had left behind a lot... I thought.

 

As I walked into the Chris Tomlin concert, I was reminded that the life of partying wasn't taken from me. It was altered. It was made better.

Louie Giglio shared at the concert and spoke the words I was needing to hear. "Our God is a party throwing God. We, as Christians, have left the partying to the world but we have so much more to celebrate."


While hanging out with my husband and friends at the concert I realized that's what we were doing. Transparent Productions, a promotions agency who brings Christian artist all over the nation, threw a rager of a party and God met us there.

The music was phenomenal. Chris Tomlin is even better live than on the radio. The crowd was on fire. Laughing, dancing and having fun. This place was filled with worship. It was a party like no other I have ever seen.

 

Transparent Productions went above and beyond. They produced this concert, that not only filled the amphitheater with great music and a whole lot of fun but set up a place for us to meet with The Lord. To be reminded of His greatness and promises. I cannot wait for the next show. I cannot wait to see what God has in store, how He will use Transparent and their artists to move each of us.

I am so thankful for companies like Transparent Productions for giving us this place to worship. To party alongside each other, before our God. They have a few shows coming up too!


First, the Hillsong United Concert in Los Angeles on Friday June 7, 2013. It is at the Hollywood Bowl and starts at 8 PM. You can get some info and buy tickets here... I may have cried when I realized I couldn't make it to this one. I'll blame the preggo hormones but between you and me, I was just really upset to miss it.

I will however be attending FISH Fest on June 29, 2013, at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater in Irvine California.  Go here to get your tickets and any info. Tickets go on sale today (May 3rd). Be sure to get 'em fast. Oh, and if you plan to go, let me know. I would love to meet you all in real life!!


Whether you are in So Cal or live far away, check out Transparent Productions. Find a show by you. You will NOT be disappointed. Pinky Promise.

 Get info on:

Their website 

Or Follow them on:

Twitter  | Facebook  | Instagram

Now go buy your tickets to FISH Fest! I want to see you there!


“This post is part of a social shopper marketing insight campaign with Pollinate Media Group® and Transparent Productions but all my opinions are my own. #pmedia #BurningLights   http://cmp.ly/3/8vNxcO.”

Joy Overwhelming

It has been a while since I have blogged about our foster care journey. It is difficult to find words to share here that will not get us into trouble. There are lots and lots of things we can't share, which is why if you follow us on instagram or facebook, you have grown rather familiar with the back of our Little Man's head. Haha.

What I can share here is how I am feeling. I am overwhelmed. Now I say that and I know where your mind went. You guys, I am not talking busy, even though I am. I am not talking about fear, even though it rises. I am talking about joy. I am talking about blessings.

I want to preface all of this by saying, foster care is not an easy road. It is not all rainbows and unicorns. It is tough. I think about the way my little man acts in the hours or days following a visit and it is saddening. I think about the twists and turns in his case that make it appear that he may go home and it's scary. Being a foster mom can be really hard at times.

But oh the joy.

Each milestone is so exciting. Watching these sweet babies overcome is exhilirating. Knowing that God is using us to help heal these babies is an honor.

Each trial has taught us to rely more and more on the Lord. Our relationship with Him has grown so so much. He is the rock that keeps us standing.

I have heard so many times, by so many people, things like "I could never do what you are doing", "I don't know how you do it". People, do you know who you are talking to? I am the girl who said she couldn't wait to adopt but would NEVER do foster care. I can not do this alone. I am only able to do this because of God. I am, oh so  thankful that He pulled me from that place of fear and equipped me. This life, although challenging brings us so much joy. Joy overwhelming.

I wish that in this spot, I could post a picture of our little man's smile. He moves people. He does something to you. There is something about him...something no one can resist. God is using him. God has a plan. He has a had a plan for this child since before he called us to be his foster parents. God is using us in mighty ways. I am not saying that to boast but to tell you that this road is not all pain and sorrow, it is not all challenges. In fact, most days have no pain, no hardships, just joy.

I have heard a lot lately about kids who are being detained (removed from their parent's care) and have no where to go. There are not enough homes. The stories have been heart wrenching. So many of you have e-mailed me and said you wished you could take them. You wish you could do this.

I am here to tell you, you can! I never thought I could. I never thought I had it in me. But the love for these children takes away all those inabilities. The love of Christ in us overpowers the fear. That's not to say fears will disappear. They are still there, for me at least. What I am saying, is that our God is bigger than our fears. He is able when we are not.

My biggest fear outside of "losing" a child while doing this was loving the parents. <---- Did you know God calls us to do that to? Craziness, right? I'm kidding. Kind of.

Last week after our visit, bio dad said "God Bless you" as he walked out of the room. Because I fought my human self and desire to dislike them, because I chose to love as Christ would love, this man, who weeks earlier wouldn't speak a word to my husband or I, asked God to bless me. I don't know how much he meant those words but I can tell you what they meant to me. Joy. Our God is so big. He is changing hearts and lives. Whether this man changes or not, I know that God has begun moving in him. What greater joy than to know the Lord and to show Him to others.

I don't know where I am trying to go with this post. Maybe one of you needed to hear this. Maybe one of you has had doubts as to whether or not you could do this or if God could use you in this way. Maybe you just needed to hear that it isn't all pain. Maybe you needed just a little push to make the big jump. If that's the case, would you please e-mail me? I would love to speak with you.

A "Sweet" Giveaway

People! I cannot even explain how excited I am to introduce you to my friend Tasha today. This girl is an example of being obedient to the Lord and the fast rising success of her business is proof of His faithfulness when we follow His plans.

I could go on and on telling you about how great this lady and her amazing chocolates are but I'm gonna let her tell you about it all for me. OH, and she is being so kind as to offer us a giveaway! So meet Tasha and then enter the giveaway and of course order some yummy chocolates.

Hello, first and foremost I am the daughter of the King. My name is Tasha-Ann, and  I love Jesus.  I am a Wife and Mother of two with a 12 year age gap.  I have a servants heart. I am very blessed with the love for what I do. I enjoy making others happy and I seem to be able to do that well, through their stomachs.  I am so blessed to be able to stay at home with my little honey.  My husband is Awesome.  He has been such a cheerleader for me.  I have been through a lot in my life.  Most of which I brought on myself.  I have known Jesus practically my whole life but have chosen to ignore him for a lot of it.  Praise the Lord for Grace.  Since I've fell back in love with him, life has been so much better.  I am blessed beyond anything I could dream.

I have been casting chocolate since I was about 12 or 13.  My mom brought home a 50lb box of chocolate and a bunch of molds and that was the start of something awesome.  I taught myself. I have been trying to get my daughter to help me make candy but she only likes to eat the finished product. 

Tasha-Ann's Sweet Treats started getting serious about 1 year ago.  When I realized that I had a product that people wanted.  I have always loved making candy, and that was usually what I always brought to anything I was invited to.  Even though friends and family knew what I did, it just wasn't on their mind to share.  This is something that people need to see.  They have no idea sometimes, the candy that I can make. So after much thought and tons of encouragement from many people I started a page on FB.  Since I have done that the Lord has blessed me.  I get to glorify him, give him thanks and praise while making others happy and bringing some joy to their event.   I am blessed to still continue being at home and work my business.

My Mission is to bring some expensive looking candy to your event for budget friendly price.  Custom candy like this is not hugely available because the cost is so high.  I believe your party favor should be edible or useful.  Why spend all that money on something that someone will throw away, when you can spend all the money on something that someone will get to eat?  I love doing this so much, I wish I could just give it away.  (We will later.) Yay!

My inspiration comes from my friends and family.  As soon as I have a theme, I take it and run.  When I find a candy mold that I know someone would enjoy I try to make it for them.  It brings me much joy to bring joy to others.  That is my way of telling you I LOVE YOU!  

I specialize in Chocolate Lollipops for almost any occasion, theme, or event.  Candy comes in many different colors.  All colors are white chocolate flavored.  I am able to fill some molds (depending on size) with cookies, caramel, sprinkles, graham crackers, marshmallows, cake pop filling and so on for an additional cost.  I am getting more creative with my fillings by the day.  I also offer Chocolate covered pretzels, strawberries (in season), marshmallows and soon will be introducing cake pops, but in the form of a candy mold. For the pops I make homemade buttercream icing.

I try very hard to keep my prices low.   I do all this by hand and alone.  The more notice for an order the better. I give free samples at scheduled appointments.  I like to see your invitations and color scheme at our appointment.  That way I get a better Idea of what you would like.  I can mail out orders however it will be an additional fee. More time for order to be fulfilled would be required on a mail order. Delivery is available, cost will vary.

I will be introducing new items in the summer since I am so limited on selling candy.  (melts at body temperature).  I am able to make chocolate during the summer as long as your event is indoors and the nights are cooler, otherwise its a no go. Get orders in early for winter holidays.  I will be limiting my orders and closing shop temporarily so I can have time with my family.

My favorite candies to make, are the novelties.  I love quirky, funny, "oh my gosh I didn't know you could make that", kind of candy.  I have a big "Golden Ticket"  candy mold.  So Fun.  All pieces come individually wrapped in cellophane and tied.

I believe the Lord has plans for me that He has not revealed yet. The one thing I hope you take away from reading this, is that you see the Love Christ has for you.  As I am writing this I feel the Lord tell me that someone will read this and she will feel broken.   I don't know who that is, but what I do know is that God is so faithful and Loving and he loves YOU!  I am so humbled to have been asked to share Tasha-Ann's Sweet Treats with you.  It will be an absolute pleasure to serve you, and a honor to have my Sweet Treats at your next event. 


Ummm, she's pretty stinkin' cool huh? I knew you would love her. Want to love her even more? Tasha is offering the winner of our giveaway a box of either 30 baby shower or birthday themed chocolates. That is a prize worth at least $45 y'all!

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Overnight Success

About four years ago, after having our first born, we had this glorious plan. A business that would allow me to stay home with our child and future children. We would open up shop and it would be grand. Sales bringing money flying through the doors. We prayed to God, we knew it was in His plan for me to be home with the kids. We knew that it was what was best for our family. He had called us to so much and this was just what would make it all doable.

It's funny how we think we know everything. Not to say that me being home wasn't part of His plan for us, we know now that it really was but we were going about our lives in all the wrong ways. We saw the end goal but forgot about all that needed to come first. Obedience.

I remember sitting at a blogging conference (Creative Estates) a few years ago and listening to one of the speakers, Megan, at Brassy Apple as she said "It took 5 years to become an overnight success". I remember thinking, "Come on God, that could be me. Bring on the buisness, I'm ready. We can do this together". It didn't happen. I didn't understand why God wasn't responding. Didn't He want me home?

Fast forward a few years. We had given up on our plan. We finally said, this business is a passion and we will continue on but just because I love it. The extra cash has been nice but it clearly isn't gonna pay the bills.

God had been calling us to so much. Ministries, foster care, homeschooling. Time consuming, mama needs to be at home kind of stuff but He wasn't providing the extra income. You know what? I stayed home anyway, still working very part time from home. We decided to take a leap of faith. Trust in God. Be obedient to His call regardless of our fears. We were ready to be a Vessel for Him. To simply use this little business to bring Him glory.

 {Printable}

Do you know what happened next? After 4 years of busting my butt, Vessel was an over night success. No where near the success that the speaker had but as much as I could handle. We have had to hire a seamstress, I have another friend who is a seasonal assistant. Things got real. Why now? Did the quality change? Did I promote more? Did I invest more? No. None of the above. We were running business as usual. With less effort in fact. What changed, is our hearts. We stopped relying on ourselves. We stopped trusting in talents and promotions and started trusting in God.

We were finally being obedient. God wanted us to step back and say "God we trust you. We trust you with our finances, with our family, with it all."

Guys, God is good. He is faithful. He is always there. Sometimes all it takes is for us to stand back and trust in Him to do the work. To carry our burdens and our fears.

What are you trusting in God for today? What prayers are you waiting to be answered?

Are you willing to listen, to be obedient? Share your prayer with us. Step out in faith and let's pray together, hold each other accountable.

If I've learned anything, it is that if our heart lines up with His plan, our prayer will be fulfilled. If it doesn't line up, He will go above and beyond what we could ever imagine. His plan is far greater than our own, let's start handing it over and letting Him awe us.

A God Story

For weeks, Rhiannon has been telling us that Jesus is in her heart. Asking questions about asking Him to stay in her heart forever. Growing up in a secular home and not getting saved or going to church until I was in college, I didn't know if it was even possible for a child her age to understand. Oh ye, of little faith ;) Steven and I have been discussing how to know if she truly understood. Making sure she knew the truth of Jesus and that she truly understood what she was asking.

Over these few weeks, girlfriend has shown me that she knows her stuff. She looks at me like I am crazy or not so smart when I ask her questions like "why did Jesus die?" or "did he stay buried in a tomb". With answers like "for my sins...and yours too" and "ummm, no, He is in my heart" in a tone like why don't you know this, I knew she was on the right track. Still doubting the Holy Spirit, cause I am oh so faithful in what God can do, I still prolonged it.

Then yesterday, in the midst of chaos, baby girl made in perfectly clear that she was ready. I overheard her telling Talon that Jesus loves everyone and that He was in her heart. She shared with him that in his little bible he could read about Jesus and all the stories. I knew in that moment that she was ready. I mean, she was preachin' to her baby brother, it was time to pray.

So her and I sat down and talked about what it meant. She told me that she wanted Him in her heart and that she wanted to be His princess (we had discussed that He was the King of Kings and being His daughter made her a princess. So we prayed. We prayed the sweetest most innocent prayer of salvation that I have ever heard.

I was there. I got to experience my little one make an eternal commitment. The best decision she will ever make. The biggest most important day of her life. I am still overwhelmed with tears even thinking about it. Oh the joy of knowing my daughter loves the Lord.

After praying, she told me she wanted to tell everyone. We called her daddy and grandmas, we told her bestfriends. It was such an exciting moment. The joy of the Lord was painted on her face. And there was a change in her. Her attitude has changed. Call me crazy but the girl has been transformed. I'm not saying that she isn't still a trouble-making almost 4 year old. But there has been a change in my sweet girl.

I went back and forth about sharing this here but I really wanted to have it documented. With her being so young, I don't want her to forget how it happened. I know she will always remember the decision. It is something she will live by from now on. But the hows, I wanted her to have those. So I asked her if I could post it. She was excited to have her "God story" as she called it on the blog. So her it is Rhiannon's God Story.

Coffee Date; Following God's Call

If we were to have coffee today, you would see me beaming with joy. I would also have a party crasher with me. I would tell you that he was our new foster baby and you would be amazed out how beautiful and well behaved he is.

I would tell you how our prayer life lately has been consumed with him and his birth parents. How we are praying relentlessly for them. I would also ask you to be praying for them. That God would do a work in all of them. That He would use this.

Joy.

Today was supposed to be a shop update. I made a new product last week that I have been wanting to make for a while now.

Canvas and Leather Messenger bags. I made a few and took them to Penelope Lane Boutique in Long Beach on Saturday. Before I could do a photoshoot or list them in the shop, they sold out. I even got orders for some because they watched people snag theirs before they could grab them. Holy moly man!

That being said, there will be no shop update today. Instead, I want to tell you about how blessed I felt walking away from the boutique.

I always leave shows so excited, having met people I chat with on twitter. Connecting with people I have met at other shows or am meeting for the first time. I am so filled with joy when friends come out. I have a few friends that make it to nearly every show, just to stop by, say hello and the unspoken words of I believe in you and support you. My heart is always so full.

This show was extra special. I had two of you, my readers, stop by my booth. I know that when I write here, that you are out there but meeting people in person always amazes me. There are real people out there, that come here to hear what I have to say. This humbled me. Like big time.

Who am I that anyone would come and read? It was a reminder that I have a voice. That my God has given me an arena to share His name. To speak truth and give witness to what He has done and is doing. Humbled. Blessed. Overjoyed.

As I walked away from the boutique, I knew that it wasn't about the sales. That it isn't about numbers or pageviews here. It isn't about me, or the words I type. It all comes back to Him. He has used me and this little blog in mighty ways. He will continue to do that. Even in my random posts, He will move. Our God is good like that. He can use us when we don't even know we are being used.

So here I am, a vessel. Ready to do His will.

Sole Hope

This past Saturday, I was privileged enough to be a part of something huge. A work that was placed in the hearts of two of my friends. An organization that shines the love of Christ.

Sole Hope is an organization who says "putting closed toed shoes on African children, one pair at a time" is what they do. Being a part of even one event, showed me that they do so much more than that.

They love. They reach out. They share the truth of the Love God has for us. They allow us to be a part of it.



I wish I could share with you all that they do. What this organization is about, instead I want to ask you to head over to their site. Look around.

The men cutting the hard backing foe heels.

I would love to direct you to the tab titled Get Involved. Consider hosting a shoe cutting party. Or if you can't do that and are local, come to mine... I am not sure when but Steven and I will be hosting one soon. We would love if you could come and give your time and hearts for these children.

Nat showing us what to do.

The shoe cutting party I attended was hosted by my sweet friend Natalie and her husband Micah. This couple can throw a shindig. The beauty of the event was amazing but came nothing close to showing the beauty in their hearts or the passion they have for this cause.

Donated Denim and fabric for shoes.

 God did amazing things at that party. He blessed all of us in the process. HE was there. HE was moving and HE provided.

Tracing and cutting shoe patterns

If you want to hear all about the plans He had and what He did through our willing hands, head over here and read about it.

Donations for a raffle with proceeds going to Sole Hope.

I hope you will all take a look at Sole Hope and see how you can be used.

On a less serious note, how about a photo outtake?






That would be Micah, photo-bombing my picture of the donation table.

Rainbows

People, I am one proud mama! My daughter is a rockstar.

Let me give you some background.

A few weeks ago Rhiannon started attending Rainbows at our church. Rainbows is a club for preschoolers, ages 3-5. In Rainbows the littles learn bible stories, do crafts, sing songs and play games, all while earning badges along the way.

Two weeks ago Rhi was sent home with homework and her first verse to memorize. My girl rocked it, by day 2 she could tell you the verse and where it was located. This mommy is horrible at memorizing so when my 3yo was able to memorize even a short verse...impressed!

 So fast forward to last night. Since the kids recited their verses and turned in their homework last week, it was award ceremony last night. Baby girl got her first badge!

The group sang their little song and then got their certificates with badges. I cannot wait to get her little vest to attach her badge to.

Oh and how cute was she singing "Jesus is Alive" ?

Randomly happy chaos!

Hey all! Just checking in with a quick update and some randoms. We have so much going on that I have been neglecting the blog. I feel like a broken record who repeats that statement weekly. Anyhow, here's what is happening with us...

• This Monday we will be having our first home inspection for FosterCare to Adopt. This will entail a more in depth interview and a look around our home, making sure there are no glaring safety issues. Not too worried about this visit but getting super anxious. We are so close.
• I have baby fever! I cannot tell you how ready I am to have a sweet baby or another toddler in our home. This momma is REA-DY!
• Just finished up a ton of new products, went to Penelope Lane Boutique and....well I have to start over. I was super blessed by so many of you and by all of the shoppers there. Not only were there tons of sales but also so many connections made. I was thrilled to meet quite a few of you in real life! (there will be a recap on the blog soon.
• Will be listing leather clutches this week or next. Also sending some to a salon boutique who will now be stocking them, with a percentage of sales going to Lighthouse Ministries .
• We are about to complete our Going Deeper with God. It has been an awesome course and I am not ready for it to end. I will definitely be keeping up on the new habits I have formed. My relationship with Christ has improved so much. I am in awe of His Grace and love.
• My list of custom orders is insane. Like insane in a good way. Have I mentioned how blessed I am by you all? Plus, you have some totally cute stuff for me to create. I am having a blast. 2 quilts in the works, I die!
• We start our Foster Training on the 31st. Yes, of this month. It is all happening so fast. When God said now, He meant NOW! This has me both terrified and excited beyond words. I cannot wait to share this adventure with you.
• I am back in the office 2 times a week. It is not too bad. My kids go through spurts. Some days they don't mind it. Some days they make me want to pull my hair out. All in all, they are great kids and I really can do anything with them around. I say this as they both sit playing quietly holding hands. Could I really ask for more?

So this is what is happening over here. Happy Chaos. What have you been up to? Have anything exciting happening?

Please share. We have threaded commenting now, so I can respond right here and so can other readers. FUN! Share, talk, make friends!

Going Deeper

How often do you spend time with the Lord? How often are you emerged in His word? How much time do you spend in prayer?

If you are anything like me, your answer is probably "not enough". I try to read my bible daily but I am not always consistent and I am often distracted. I do not sit and listen. Really take in what God is saying to me through the bible.

I pray numerous times a day. I have a decent prayer life. BUT it is not nearly enough. Most of the time I pray quick prayers. Five minutes at best. I cannot remember the last time that I got down on my knees and prayed for more than 10 minutes.

Things are changing though. Last night, my husband and I started a course at our church called Deeper. Going Deeper with God. For 4 weeks we are making a commitment to be at church NO MATTER WHAT, on Sunday morning and then in the evening for our class. We will be at our Growth Group every Wednesday. We will be praying daily for 15 minutes at a time. We will be in the word for even longer. We will be seeking God and all that He has in store for us. I hope that when these 4 weeks are over, we will not break these habits.

It sounds like a lot. Doesn't it? When the Pastor went through the list of what he would like us to do during the time we are in the 4 week course, I was scared. How on earth would I fit this all into my schedule? Doesn't he know I have 2 kids?!? (He has 5). Doesn't he know how much I already have on my plate? How could I possibly survive going through all of this with everything else I do? HAHA I have to laugh at myself. What do I mean? The real question is, how have I been surviving all of this without first spending all of this time with my Lord and Savior? How have I not dedicated this much time to Him before?

Silly me. Going through life like I can accomplish anything on my own. I always make it a point to seek God first but have I really been stopping to listen? How "in charge" am I allowing Him to be when I pray for a few minutes and then rush off to my busy schedule?

How much more can I accomplish when I am depending on Him fully? We will find out!

God is so good. Look at how much He has done for us when we have given Him so little to work with. I can only imagine what we will see now. I can't even fathom what is coming next.

Can I ask you to hold me accountable? If you want to join me, I would love to hear about your commitments to Him and be there to hold you accountable too. He really does deserve all we can give Him.

If you need prayer, please let me know. I would love to be praying for you.

If you are local, I would love to refer you to the next session of Deeper at our church. Let me know and I will give you all of the info.

Stop and Listen

I just want to start this off by saying, When God speaks, listen.

We recently felt the call on our lives to do Foster Care to Adopt. You can read all about it here, here and here.

When God spoke to me, He said do it now.

So we started prepping our house. We started planning construction, what needed to be done to add a room and what needed to be done before we could do that.

We knew we had to eliminate some bulky furniture, move my studio to the laundry room, move the toys and create a playroom. We knew we had work to do.

We started busting our booties to get it all done. We started stressing out. Okay, I started stressing out. I started freaking out. Things in our home got crazy. They got overwhelming. I got overwhelmed. We decided to slow things down, take it one step at a time. We said that when we finished one step we would start the next. The construction could start after X,Y and Z and once that started we could put in our application.

Three days after those words were spoken, our kids got sick. Not sick enough that they or it was a problem. Just sick enough that we had to stay home. In the weekend that they were sick, we created the studio and moved in, we moved the toys and almost fully completed the playroom. There are just a few decorative elements to be completed, nothing that would hold us back. As we were in the middle of all of this, we got a phone call. A friend wanting to purchase the furniture...that day. He came and picked it up.

There is no denying that this was all God. There was an obstacle and He pushed us through it. We begin construction this week. Which means, we put in our application THIS week.

People, God has a plan for us. He spoke and we committed to follow Him. When we felt overwhelmed, He lifted us up and carried us through it. He is meeting us where we are and asking that we simply come with Him on this journey. I am overjoyed with what He is doing.

Is our home still chaos? Yes. Is it still crazy and stressful? Yes. Is it still overwhelming? Yes. Do I still feel like my life is falling apart? Yes. Are we still trusting God? Yes.

Sometimes in life, our world needs to fall apart so that God can rebuild it. He is not making our lives bad or bringing it to the point to where we cannot handle it. We are still trucking along and having fun. We are just being pulled to our limits to fulfill His plans in our life.

That may sound like I am saying that God is destroying or harming our little world and that is so far from what I am trying to say. What I mean is that He is taking what we have and changing it all. He is taking our strengths and molding them. He is taking our weaknesses and working them out. He is taking our lifestyle and our home and guiding us in making it what it needs to be in order to do what we are called to do.

We are not only becoming ready for possible foster children, we are correcting bad habits (mostly in my time managment) and establishing tradition, opportunity for fun and memories. We are making our home not only prepared but a place better for our family.

God is so faithful. God is so good. God is soooo right. When He speaks, do yourself a favor and listen. He will mold you and stretch you beyond what you can imagine. In the midst of the stress we are going through, our marriage has been strengthened, really, our whole world has. Keeping your eye on God is something that all marriages should focus on but that is a whole other post.

What I am saying here is simple. LISTEN UP, He speaks loud and clear when you let Him. I am amazed at what God is doing in our home and family.