Visit to Arkansas, Tea Parties, and Christian's Adoption (Please Read)

 We had so much fun in Arkansas, I had to include some more pictures from our trip. Adelyn is sitting beside me and she is looking at these pictures saying, "That's hot." They definitely remember how hot Arkansas is compared to 'home.'

 This picture absolutely cracks me up. This is the girl's cousin Dillian. They all look like teenagers in this pic. ha!

 We had a dinner party at my mom's house that night and lots of relatives came over. It was so so good to see everyone!

 We swam every day at Lala's! It was so fun and a great way to cool off! My sweet step mom got these bathing suits for the girls and they were just perfect with the floaties built in.

 Adelyn hurt her foot one day and Annabelle was her doctor. Me and mom were laughing hysterically that they were both cooperating with this!

 And today the girls had a tea party and it was too cute not to snap a picture of. 

Now, please, please don't stop reading here...


 A precious lady from the blog "Team Sullivan" met a boy named Christian on a trip to Ghana and now is blogging to raise funds for the family that is trying to adopt him from Ghana. Please take 2 minutes and read a snip it from this "God story." 

"After our time in the school yard we went back to the hotel for the rest of the night. Jake and some of the others headed into the restaurant gazebo to talk….I snuck away to our room to write the day’s happenings in my journal. As I was writing tonight, all of a sudden the door flung open and Jake walked in with Christian and some of his friends!!!!! When I saw him peek around the door I said, “Christian, I was literally just thinking writing about you!!!” Jake began filing through our suitcase of shoe donations to find some for Christian and his friends (it turned out that many of the children from the school yard had followed a few of our group back to the hotel…many of us rode back in the pick-up truck, but a few walked back and apparently had company coming behind them). Unfortunately medium sized boy shoes had been the hot commodity over the past few days, and there were none left that would fit them. Instead Jake rounded up some t-shirts, food, and candy and as quickly as they came in Christian and his friends were gone – practically skipping off happy as could be! Later tonight as Jake and I were summarizing our day with each other Christian’s name came up again.

“I asked him about his eye,” Jake said.

“What?!?!?! When?!?!” I answered.

“When he came to the hotel tonight. We were talking up in the restaurant before we came to look through the shoes.”

“Well, what did he say?” I asked.

“All he said was that his dad didn’t want him anymore…so his dad had tried to gouge out his eye. He also said that his mom didn’t want him either, so he lives with his grandma now.”

As Jake spoke my heart sunk for this boy. He was so intelligent, and well-spoken, and sweet-hearted. Knowing that his own mother and father didn’t want him made me sick. Immediately Psalm 27:10 came to my mind – Though my father and mother forsake me, the Lord will receive me.
After Jake and I talked a little more I felt strongly that I should look around and find Christian tomorrow. I wanted him to take me to meet his grandma."

If you can, please click on "Team Sullivan" above and read the whole story. It's amazing how our God works.


**You can donate to "Christian's Grace Fund online by clicking  here.**

Thankful Tuesday

 Today is THANKFUL TUESDAY. I literally have pages of things to be thankful for.....I'm not so sure I spent my day meditating on these things though, in fact I know part of the day I didn't. Instead I let my mind wander off into the confusion of what all is going on around me. Soooo, I want to focus back in on what I am thankful for.

I am THANKFUL TO GOD FOR: 

1) Getting to stay home and watch the girls have spontaneous tea parties.

 2) I am thankful for a husband who is in the word every single morning and whose example has obviously rubbed off on this little one

 3) I am thankful for how excited little AB was that it was swimsuit day at school and as a mom getting to share in her joy. :)

 4) I am thankful for God giving me such a precious and cute gift.

 5) or should I say giftS. This one HAD to wear her bathing suit too of course!

 6) I am thankful for the little moments we get to play together while Annabelle is at school.

7) I am thankful that they do love each other.

8) And for how much fun it can be to watch her learn.

9) I am thankful for her help in the kitchen. :)

10) And last but certainly not least in any shape or form. I am thankful for God's word!

2 Timothy 1:12, 

"And this is why I am suffering as I do. Still I am not ashamed, for I know (perceive, have knowledge of, and am acquainted with) Him Whom I have believed (adhered to and trusted in and relied on), and I am [positively] persuaded that He is able to guard and keep that which has been entrusted to me and which I have committed [to Him] until that day." {Above is from the McArthur Study Bible}

 

1 Chronicles 16:8

Give thanks unto the Lord, call upon his name, make known his deeds among the people!!

Crystal's Visit & Kim's Faith

 Well, today Crystal had to leave. I was pretty sad about it to be honest.

 She just played sooo well with my kids and loved on them so much; it was so fun for me!!

 Yesterday, we got to go to the park. It was really awesome. I told Crystal that she came on the best three days we have had this year!!

 This is the sweetest picture ever and it was so sweet to watch. Annabelle just LOVED swinging like this on Crystal's belly. It was precious!!

 We had a little picnic in the park. I told Crystal it was the perfect day, just perfect weather, the girls wore themselves out and took goood naps! It was just great!

 Before we headed to the park, we went to our favorite place (JUST KIDDING!!!) the doctor. Adelyn has another ear infection. More on that later....

Annabelle did such a great job at the doctor this time!! She just sat up on the table and colored her paper and then she got to put it on the wall for a treat!!

 Annabelle loved Crystal's belly. She actually understood that there was a baby in there and she called him by his name, "Mack." She loved to listen for his heartbeat but mostly just liked to cuddle with him.

 Adam kept the girls last night and Crystal and I went to the best Chinese restaurant in town! It was DELISH and Style treated me to! How sweet is she! After that, we went and got everybody ice cream!!

 Today, while Crystal was getting ready, the girls and I had a tea party! It was unbelievably hot and we got some great Vitamin d and sun! I am sooo not complaining! I LOVE the hot!!

Crystal also brought the girls some treats! It blessed my heart so much!! She is such a wonderful friend! I loved every second of her visit and I cannot wait to meet her little Mack!

The first post about Crystal's visit can be found here.

The last picture I took of Adelyn this morning because she put peanut butter right on her nose! haha! She looks sooo sleepy; she has just not been sleeping hardly at all, poor thing! Adelyn has yet another ear infection, BUT we are going to the ENT on Friday and I am praying that goes well!! A few days after this post my sweet friend Kim's dad passed away from cancer. To talk about somebody that has been through a lot in the last few years.....Kim has been through so much it's really almost not believable and the morning after her dad passed away she sent this in her text: "....thankful for the peace that only comes from my heavenly father." That is faith and it speaks volumes through her life devoted to Jesus no matter what.

A Week in Random Pics etc

This is going to be such a random post but I wanted to include some of our pictures from this week. I haven't taken hardly any because Adelyn has had an ear infection and has been doing a lot of waking up in the night and sleeping with us (which means no sleeping for me!) The doctor asked us about going to an ENT for tubes but I decided we should wait and see if we have one more. I know...but it was just my gut instinct.

 

Sweet Adelyn had some very sleepy eyes.

 

Adam will want to kill me when he knows I posted this, but he has gotten some gray hairs. This is not even a good picture of all of the greys!! haha!

I also went to a semi-formal tea party for a girl named Tammy in our youth group! It was so fun and yummy!!

It snowed this week a lot and I think we are getting more snow tonight!

Annabelle and I colored and played with stickers while Adelyn slept one day! She is loving Pink-a-licious.

And the last bit of randomness, I found this in a Self magazine I was reading at the Y this morning. I thought it was hilarious!! Adam said, "Are you sure your brain goes back to normal?!" ha! Thanks Adam!


I am still loving my morning devos. Here are three verses that spoke specifically to me this week that I wanted to share:

"Humble yourselves (demote, lower yourself in your own estimation) therefore under God's mighty hand, that He may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety (discontent, discouragement, despair, questioning, wondering, pain, suffering) on Him (trust Him) because He cares for you." 1 Peter 5:6-7

"I will walk in freedom because I have sought out your word." Psalm 119:45

"You may think you can condemn people but you are just as bad and have no excuse! When you say they are wicked and should be punished, you are condemning yourself, for you who judge others by judging do the very same thing. Why do you think you can avoid God's judgment when you do these same things (sin)? Don't you see how wonderfully kind, tolerant, patient, and forgiving God is with you?!? Does this mean nothing to you? Cant you see that His wonderful kindness is intended to turn you from sin." Romans 2:1-4


That's all! Goodnight!